Stack 
Annex 


?S 
3503 


Beat  ty ,     Jol 
Uric  I  e     Pfc 
Co  lumb  u^i 
Print! 


TEMP  SL 


iH2J-iJl  4. 
Skect* 

iio     :.-rL>i'«    J*     beer 
ipany  ,  Scl907. 


INITIALS  AND 


*£_ 

/ 


•*r-^/ 


or- 


cr 


By  JOHN    BEATTY 


COLUMBUS,  OHIO 

F.  J.  HEER  PRINTING  COMPANY 

1907 


Stack 
Annex 

ps 


UNCLE  PETER  SKED 
I 

A  SLIP  BETWEEN  CUP  AND  LIP 

THOSE  who  know  nothing  of  Cranberry  County 
save  what  they  see  of  it  as  they  are  whirled 
across  its  undulated  surface  on  the  graded  track  of  a 
railway,  may  naturally  enough  conclude  it  is  a  stale 
subdivision  of  the  commonwealth,  where  population 
vegetates  all  unconscious  of  events  which  tend  to 
quicken  the  blood  of  men.  But  notwithstanding  the 
unpicturesqueness  of  its  scenery,  the  plainness  of  its 
farm  houses,  and  the  unfashionable  costume  of  its  in 
habitants,  it  will  be  found  to  have  its  fair  quota  of 
social  ups  and  downs,  and  dramatic  episodes  ;  and 
should  these  ever  fail  to  leaven  the  human  lump  suf 
ficiently,  the  spring  and  fall  elections  may  always  be 
relied  upon  to  give  additional  vivacity  to  the  drowsy 
mass,  and  afford  the  usual  crop  of  petty  rivalries, 
political  clap-trap,  and  needless  lying. 

Young  men  go  a-courting  in  Cranberry,  just  as 
they  do  in  more  ostentatious  sections  of  the  country, 
and  they  sometimes  get  the  girls  they  like  best  and 
sometimes  do  not  ;  and  occasionally  in  these  little  com 
petitions  for  the  favor  of  the  fair  sex,  they  maul 
each  other  with  their  fists,  and  so  by  a  sort  of  counter 
irritation  process,  obtain  relief  from  the  intense  sore 
ness  and  aching  of  their  hearts.  And  then  again,  purse 
proud  and  blood  proud  fathers,  like  such  fathers  else 
where,  grow  irritable  and  obstinate  and  terribly  dis- 


2  UNCLE  PETER  SKED 

agreeable  when  they  discover  young  men  of  no  prop 
erty  and  perhaps  little  promise,  prowling  about  their 
houses,  seeking  opportunities  to  make  love  to  hand 
some  daughters  who  may  be  still  in  their  teens,  and 
hence  too  young  to  assume  the  responsibilities  of'  mar 
ried  life.  And  sometimes  philanthropic  brothers  take 
these  young  lovers  in  hand  with  a  view  to  disciplining 
them  for  their  own  good  and  the  sister's  benefit,  and 
as  a  wholesome  lesson  also  to  the  neighborhood ;  then 
of  course  there  is  much  to  talk  of  when  good  people 
gather  about  the  church  door  before  service  of  a  Sun 
day  morning  in  summer  time,  and  after  service,  too, 
for  that  matter,  before  they  reluctantly  scatter  to  their 
several  homes  to  attend  to  the  cow-milking,  and  other 
chores  common  to  farm  life. 

The  most  interesting  incident  of  this  sort  which 
ever  transpired  in  Cranberry,  occurred  ten  years  ago, 
or  thereabouts,  when  young  Rob  Brett,  Mrs.  Dick 
Dundren's  second  cousin,  undertook  to  run  away  with 
'Squire  Dougald  Frazier's  daughter,  and  marry  her  in 
spite  of  opposition.  He  had  arranged  to  have  the 
Reverend  Dr.  Mathe\vs,  of  Cranberry  town,  tie  the 
marital  knot,  and  was  in  the  act  of  entering  the  par 
sonage  gate  with  the  blushing  and  trembling  Gertrude 
on  his  arm,  when  lo!  and  behold!  her  three  brothers, 
Dougald,  Malcolm  and  Archie,  pounced  down  upon 
him  in  great  fury.  All  recollect  the  fight  who  saw7  it, 
and  not  a  few  were  lookers-on,  for  it  lasted  above  an 
hour  and  took  place  near  sundown  on  the  lawn  in  front 
of  the  pastor's  house,  and  in  the  shadow  of  the  princi 
pal  church  of  the  village. 

Rob  Brett  was  then  twenty-two,  and  a  thorough 
bred,  who  stood  straight  on  his  legs  and  carried  his 
chest  well  out.  It  was  not  his  habit  to  consult  people 


A  SLIP  BETWEEN  CUP  AND  LIP        3 

as  to  whether  he  had  better  do  what  he  pleased  or  not, 
and  yet  he  was  a  manly  fellow  who  was  never  known 
to  take  the  property  of  other  folks  without  permission, 
except   in  this  one   instance   when   he   seized   'Squire 
Frazier's  daughter;    and  it  may  be  safely  assumed  in 
this  case  that  the  girl  was  not  as  strenuous  in  her  ob 
jection   to  being  picked   up   and^  hurried  off,   as   she 
might  have  been.     It  is  true,  indeed,  she  desired  to  be 
an  obedient  daughter,  and  that  she  respected  her  father, 
and  was  a  modest,  well  bred  girl,  withal,  who  could 
never  have  brought  herself  to  the  work  of  planning 
an  elopement,  or  of  assenting  to  one  devised  by  others, 
But  then  she  was  desperately  fond  of  Rob,  and  when 
the  handsome  fellow  stopped  her  on  the  highway  as 
she  was  returning  to  her  home  from  a  neighborly  call, 
and  half  forcibly  placed  her  in  the  carriage,  and  told 
her  he  had  the  marriage  license  in  his  pocket,  and  that 
Dr.  Mathews  was  waiting  for  them,  and  that  a  little 
courage  now  would  give  them  the  victory,  she  was 
perhaps  too  bewildered  to  see  her  duty  clearly,  and 
possibly  too  weak  to  stand  out  resolutely  against  the 
man  she  loved.     Of  course  if  she  had  been  a  strong- 
minded    woman    of    mature    years    she    would    have 
screamed,  and  scratched  like  a  panther,  and  insisted 
upon  a  strict  observance  of  all  the  proprieties,  and 
died  in  her  tracks  rather  than  go  upon  such  an  errand 
without  the  conventional  wedding  garment.    But  Ger 
trude  was  young  and  Rob  gave  her  small  opportunity 
for  calm  reflection  and  the  adoption  of  heroic  meas 
ures.    While  assuring  her  of  the  intensity  of  his  love, 
and  depicting  in  vivid  colors  the  delights  of  the  future, 
he  plied  the  whip  so  vigorously  to  a   span  of  fleet- 
footed   bays   that   almost  before   the   astonished   and 
trembling  girl  had  time  to  collect  her  thoughts  and 


4  UNCLE  PETER  SKED 

summon  up  whatever  resolution  she  might  have  had 
within  her,  the  carriage  came  to  a  sudden  stop  in  front 
of  the  parsonage  gate. 

Old  Dougald  Frazier  was  a  Scotchman,  proud 
always  and  at  times  irritable,  but  when  things  went 
to  suit  him,  genial  and  neighborly  enough.  He  set 
great  store  by  Gertrude,  possibly  because  she  was  his 
youngest  child,  and  only  daughter ;  and  possibly  be 
cause  his  three  sons  were  ne'er-do-weels,  who  afforded 
him  neither  aid  nor  comfort ;  and  possibly  because 
she  was  the  loveliest  girl  of  seventeen,  or  any  other 
age,  in  all  that  country. 

The  'Squire  would  doubtless  have  been  a  more 
contented  citizen  of  the  land  of  his  adoption  than  he 
was,  if  he  could  have  kept  his  thoughts  from  dwelling 
so  intently  and  continuously  on  the  castles  of  his  an 
cestors,  and  the  splendors  of  the  time  when  the  Fra- 
ziers  stood  side  by  side  with  kings  on  famous  battle 
fields.  But  he  could  not,  nor  could  he  help  contrasting 
his  own  humble  farm  house  and  the  thousand  or  more 
acres  of  poorly  cultivated  land  about  it,  with  the 
stately  mansion  in  which  he  was  born,  and  the  broad 
well-kept  fields  and  picturesque  scenery  familiar  to 
him  in  boyhood.  Reflections  like  these  were  not  at  all 
calculated  to  increase  his  respect  for  the  people  of 
Cranberry  County,  and  so  when  Rob  Brett  came  sky 
larking  about  the  Frazier  homestead,  the  old  aristo 
crat  not  only  bade  him  keep  away,  but  became  violent 
and  damned  the  whole  generation  of  Bretts,  their  rela 
tives  and  friends. 

In  this  instance,  however,  as  in  many  others,  the 
'Squire's  lively  temper  leaped  beyond  the  trim  do 
main  of  justice  and  lighted  amid  the  brambles  of  un 
truth;  for  there  were  many  respectable  folks  in  the 


A  SLIP  BETWEEN  CUP  AND  LIP        5 

Brett  family,  and  one  of  these  was  Mrs.  Dick  Dun- 
dren,  the  wife  of  a  nephew  of  Gertrude's  own  mother. 
The  fact  is,  there  was  only  one  person,  so  far  as  the 
public  knew  of  the  Brett  connection,  who  was  too 
mean  to  live,  and  that  was  old  Peter  Sked,  the  miser, 
Rob  Brett's  uncle.  It  must  be  admitted  that  he  was 
altogether  objectionable,  but  it  was  certainly  no  more 
Rob's  duty  to  kill  him  than  that  of  'Squire  Dougald 
himself.  And  it  could  not  be  denied  that  even  the 
Skeds  were  an  old  family  running  back  in  a  line 
easily  traceable  through  the  Revolution  to  a  broad 
farm  in  Shropshire.  There  were  now  collateral  mem 
bers  of  it  in  the  army,  on  the  bench,  and  in  the  pulpit. 
As  a  rule  whatever  the  Skeds  took  hold  of  they  clung 
to  tenaciously  until  they  achieved  success.  Old  Peter's 
predominating  characteristic  was  simply  an  exaggera 
tion  of  a  peculiarity  of  the  race.  If  he  had  begun  life 
with  a  million  it  is  not  at  all  improbable  that  he  would 
have  been  noted  for  his  extravagance,  and  died  with 
out  a  dollar.  The  tendency  of  the  Sked  blood  was 
toward  extremes.  Old  Peter's  grandfather  had  ac 
cumulated  a  fortune  by  a  long  life  of  sordid  pinch- 
ings  and  abjecf  discomforts,  which  the  son,  Peter's 
father,  had  scattered  by  open  handed  and  reckless  im 
providence.  The  fact,  therefore,  that  Peter,  Rob's 
uncle,  was  a  disgusting  and  relentless  old  skin  flint 
should  not  have  been  accepted  as  proof  conclusive  that 
there  was  no  generous  blood  in  the  Sked  family.  But 
let  all  this  be  as  it  may,  old  Dougald  Frazier  could 
not  tolerate  Rob  Brett,  and  the  sons  regarded  him  with 
even  greater  disfavor  than  the  father,  and  so  had 
kept  watch  on  him  and  ward  on  their  sister  for  more 
than  twelve  months,  prophesying,  meanwhile,  with 
much  frequency  and  great  emphasis  that  some  ter- 


6  UNCLE  PETER  SKED 

rible  disaster  would  ultimately  overtake  Rob  if  he  did 
not  seek  bodily  exercise  at  a  respectful  distance  from 
the  Frazier  homestead.  It  may  be  these  vaporings 
of  a  trio  of  idle  roysterers  spurred  him  to  more  vig 
orous  measures  than  he  at  first  contemplated ;  but  this 
is  by  no  means  certain. 

Old  Dougald's  sons  did  not  occupy  an  elevated 
place  in  the  estimation  of  their  more  temperate  and 
frugal  neighbors,  and  their  utterances  were  not  ac 
cepted  as  current  coin  and  passed  from  hand  to  hand 
unquestioned.  No  man  can  continue  a  habitual  and 
intemperate  imbiber  of  raw  whisky  for  ten  years  with 
out  going  at  the  end  of  that  time,  if  indeed  he  has 
not  gone  before,  to  the  poor  house,  the  prison,  or  the 
grave ;  and  Dougald,  Malcolm  and  Archie  Frazier 
were  in  a  fair  way  to  reach  all  the  places  named,  and 
quite  sure,  at  least,  of  one  of  them.  The  mother,  Mr. 
Dick  Dundren's  aunt,  had  very  fortunately  for  herself, 
died  while  her  sons  were  still  bright,  promising  young 
boys,  and  hence  had  experienced  none  of  the  heart 
rending  anxieties  with  which  fond  mothers  watch  from 
day  to  day  the  gradual  descent  and  final  degradation 
of  their  own  flesh  and  blood.  No  father,  perhaps,  was 
ever  fonder  of  his  sons,  at  first,  and  more  desirous  of 
their  success,  than  the  elder  Frazier ;  but  after  the 
mother's  death,  they,  by  frequent  and  prolonged  ab 
sences  from  home  and  riotous  conduct,  gradually  de 
stroyed  his  confidence  in  them,  until  finally  he  seemed 
to  abandon  all  hope  of  their  reformation,  and  to  rely 
on  Gertrude  alone  to  maintain  and  perpetuate,  in  so 
far  as  one  of  her  sex  could  do  it,  the  traditions  and 
honors  of  the  family. 

But  the  girl  loved  the  castles  which  her  fancy 
builded  better  than  the  turreted  strongholds  of  her 


A  SLIP  BETWEEN  CUP  AND  LIP        7 

ancestors,  and  she  thought  more  of  Robert  Brett,  a 
thousand  times,  than  of  the  dead  Fraziers  who  fought 
with  Robert  Bruce,  and  yet  when  her  lover  sought  to 
hand  her  from  the  carriage  at  Dr.  Mathews'  gate,  she 
grew  deathly  pale  and  shrank  from  him,  and  her  quiv 
ering  lips  seemed  to  be  making  an  unsuccessful  effort 
to  frame  a  protest.  But  it  was  now  no  time  for  argu 
ment,  and  so  Rob  put  his  strong  arms  around  her,  and 
with  gentle  force  lifted  her  to  the  ground,  and  then 
supported  her  up  the  narrow  walk  leading  to  the  door 
of  the  parsonage. 

Fifteen  uninterrupted  minutes  would  doubtless 
have  translated  Gertrude  into  Mrs.  Brett  for  life,  or  at 
least  until  Rob  shuffled  off  the  mortal  coil,  and  left 
her  free  to  take  another  name.  But  just  then,  unfor 
tunately,  her  brothers  came  dashing  up  on  horseback, 
and  dismounting  hastily,  profaned  the  sacred  edifice  in 
the  shadow  of  which  they  stood,  and  shocked  the 
minister  of  peace  in  whose  hearing  they  were,  by 
pouring  upon  Brett's  head  torrents  of  blasphemous 
and  vile  invective.  Gertrude  would  have  fallen  now 
if  Rob  had  not  taken  her  up  in  his  arms  and  carried 
her  to  Dr.  Mathews,  who,  upon  the  arrival  of  the  car 
riage,  had  come  to  the  door  of  the  parsonage  with  his 
wife,  to  welcome  the  couple  whose  marriage  he  ex 
pected  to  solemnize.  , 

When  the  door  had  closed  behind  Gertrude  and 
Mrs.  Mathews,  Rob  turning  to  the  brothers,  said 
quietly : 

"Now,  gentlemen,  you  have  talked  enough.  What 
do  you  propose  to  do?" 

"We  propose  to  prevent  this  marriage,"  said  Dou- 
gald.  "It's  downright  robbery " 


8  UNCLE  PETER  SKED 

"It's  the  trick  of  a  beggarly  scoundrel  to  get  a 
iarm,"  shouted  Malcolm. 

"It's  the  attempt  of  a  d rascal  to  thrust  him 
self  where  he  is  not  wanted,"  yelled  Archie. 

"Gentlemen,"  interposed  the  pastor,  "discuss  this 
matter  less  violently — surely  Mr.  Brett  stands  well  in 
this  community,  and  is  entitled  to  fair  —  gentlemanly 
—  treatment." 

"Do  you  call  it  the  act  of  a  gentleman  to  seek  to 
take  advantage  of  a  young  girl?"  retorted  Dougald. 

"To  hang  about  another's  house  like  a  sneak 
thief?"  said  Malcolm. 

"To  push  -himself  into  a  family  which  despises 
him?"  said  Archie. 

"If  Miss  Gertrude  is  satisfied,"  replied  Dr.  Math- 
ews,  "surely  you  should  be ;  she  has  a  greater  interest 
in  the  matter  than  yourselves ;  why  not  leave  her  the 
same  freedom  to  choose  you  would  insist  upon  if  in 
her  place?" 

"She  shall  not  disgrace  the  Fraziers,"  replied 
Dougald  hotly.  "Her  father  and  brothers  have  rights 
which  she  shall  not  be  permitted  to  disregard." 

"Rights  or  no  rights,  she  shall  not  marry  Brett," 
said  Archie. 

"That  will  depend  wholly  upon  her  will  and 
wishes,  "interposed  Rob,  calmly.  "If  she  consents 
there  are  not  Fraziers  enough  in  Cranberry  County 
to  prevent." 

"There  is  one  right  here,"  retorted  Archie,  squar 
ing  himself  for  action,  "who  can  prevent  it  and  will." 

"And  another  here."  cried  Malcolm. 

"And  still  another,"  shouted  Dougald. 

Rob  made  no  reply  in  words,  but  sprang  upon 
his  opponents  with  the  fierceness  of  a  tiger.  The 


A  SLIP  BETWEEN  CUP  AND  LIP        9 

struggle  shall  not  be  described.  It  is  enough  to  say 
that  when  it  ended  and  some  enthusiastic  fellow  in 
the  crowd  of  lookers-on  proposed  three  cheers  for  Rob 
Brett,  they  were  given  so  vigorously  no  one  could  for 
a  moment  doubt  the  sympathy  of  the  village  people  had 
been  with  him  throughout,  and  that  they  were  en 
tirely  satisfied  with  the  result.  The  blood  of  the  Fra- 
ziers,  coming  as  it  did  from  a  long  line  of  warriors 
stretching  back  to  the  somewhat  hazy  time  of  Bruce 
and  Wallace,  may  have  been  superior  to  the  crimson 
current  of  other  folks,  but  on  this  occasion  it  certainly 
failed  to  exalt  itself  by  any  special  feat  of  generosity 
or  valor.  It  is  one  thing,  however,  to  be  clad  in  linked 
steel  and  contend  with  shepherds  clad  in  sheep  skin, 
and  another  to  stand  up  on  fair  terms  and  strike  out 
from  the  shoulder  with  bare  knuckles.  In  this  latter 
game  Rob  Brett,  although  he  seldom  played  it,  had  no 
equal  in  Cranberry  County. 

There  was  pressing  need  just  now  for  the  village 
surgeon,  and  for  plasters  and  poultices.  Dougald  was 
stunned  beyond  consciousness ;  Malcolm  and  Archie 
were  not  only  much  disfigured  about  the  face  and  dim 
of  vision,  but  exceedingly  tender  in  the  region  of  the 
ribs.  Rob  had  not,  by  any  means,  escaped  unhurt; 
indeed  his  face  and  head  and  chest  had  been  sorely 
pummeled,  but  thanks  to  a  sturdy  pair  of  legs  he 
could  still  stand  erect.  Going  to  Dr.  Mathews,  who 
stood  at  the  door  of  the  parsonage,  shocked  by  the 
struggle  he  had  been  unable  to  prevent,  and  was  com 
pelled  to  witness,  Brett  said : 

"Can  I  see  Gertrude?  I  think  the  ceremony  may 
be  performed  now." 

"Mr.  Brett,"  returned  the  pastor  solemnly,  "I  fear 
a  funeral  is  more  likely  to  follow  this  unfortunate  and 


10  UNCLE  PETER  SKED 

most  disgraceful  affair  than  a  wedding. —  You  have 
made  a  grave  mistake,  sir." 

"But  I  must  see  Gertrude!  I  shall  abide  by  her 
decision  in  the  matter." 

"She  will  not  see  you " 

"I  do  not  believe  you,  sir  —  I  beg  pardon  —  I  do 
not  mean  to  question  the  truth  of  your  statement  nor 
to  speak  roughly  —  but  I  must  see  Gertrude.  If  I 
have  done  her  wrong  I  should  ask  her  forgiveness. 
God  knows  I  meant  well  —  I  —  I  —  may  have  erred 
in  thinking  she  loved  me  as  deeply  —  as  sincerely  —  as 
I  do  her,  but  surely  this  is  no  great  offense." 

"When  I  say  she  will  not,"  replied  the  pastor 
softly,  and  with  better  feeling  in  his  tone,  "I  simply 
repeat  her  own  words." 

This  was  the  first  blow  that  staggered  Rob;  his 
courage  seemed  for  an  instant  to  disappear,  but  after  a 
time  he  said: 

"Dr.  Mathews,  I  think  you  misunderstood  her.  If 
I  may  not  see  her,  bring  me  the  words  you  have  ut 
tered  over  her  own  signature,  and  —  and  —  I  shall 
leave  and  trouble  her  no  more." 

"Mr.  Brett,"  said  the  pastor  kindly,  for  he  saw  it 
was  love  and  not  mere  bravado  that  had  prompted  the 
young  man  to  adopt  the  course  he  had  taken,  "you  are 
not  managing  this  matter  wisely.  You  should  not  urge 
Miss  Frazier  to  a  decision  now ;  time  and  patience  are 
likely  to  prove  good  friends  to  you." 

"No,  no,  I  must  see  her  or  have  proof  that  she 
will  not  see  me.  After  coming  so  far  I  shall  neither 
stop  nor  be  stopped  by  anybody  but  Gertrude." 

"I  am  an  older  man  than  you  are  —  old  enough 
indeed  to  be  your  father  —  and  have  had  much  ex 
perience  ;  take  my  advice  and  let  the  matter  rest  until 


A  SLIP  BETWEEN  CUP  AND  LIP      11 

the  bitterness  and  sorrow  occasioned  by  this  struggle 
are  in  some  degree  forgotten." 

"I  will  not — I  mean  to  say  I  cannot." 

It  was  evidently  a  waste  of  time  to  prolong  the 
discussion.  There  was  nothing  the  good  pastor  could 
do  now,  but  re-enter  his  house  and  consult  Gertrude. 

She  had  at  no  time  consented  to  an  irregular  and 
hasty  marriage.  The  impetuosity  of  young  Brett  re 
inforced  by  her  own  sincere  affection,  had  simply 
paralyzed  her  discretion  and  overpowered  her  will. 
But  the  rude  interruption  at  the  parsonage  had  broken 
the  spell  that  was  upon  her  and  given  her  time  to 
reflect.  All  her  innate  sense  of  delicacy  and  maidenly 
decorum  now  came  to  her  assistance.  If  Brett's  pro 
ceedings  were  ill-advised  even  before  the  struggle,  as 
she  now  perceived  they  were,  still  less  could  she  con 
sent  to  the  immediate  exchange  of  marriage  vows 
after  what  had  passed.  Having  just  experienced  the 
force  of  her  lover's  importunity  she  determined  not 
to  subject  herself  to  it  again,  and  to  defer  all  thought 
of  matrimony  to  a  happier  season.  Consequently  she 
deemed  it  best  that  Brett  should  not  again  that  day 
be  admitted  to  her  presence. 

After  a  brief  absence  Dr.  Mathews  returned  with 
a  little  scrap  of  paper  which  he  handed  to  the  im 
portunate  young  man.  Rob  stared  at  the  writing  on 
it  for  a  moment,  and  looking  up  into  Dr.  Mathews' 
face,  said : 

"You  were  right;  I  have  made  a  great  mistake. 
Good-bye." 

Rob  now  walked  slowly  to  the  street,  and  then 
proceeded  to  the  village  hotel.  A  few  hours  later  he 
left  Cranberry  on  a  westward  going  train,  and  has 


12  UNCLE  PETEH  SKED 

not  been  seen  of  heard  of,  by  his  old  neighbors,  from 
that  time  to  this. 

Ten  years  —  the  one-sixth  part  of  an  old  man's 
life  —  have  gone  by  since  then.  'Squire  Frazier  and 
his  son  Malcolm  are  sleeping  in  the  little  cemetery  on 
Sand  Ridge.  Dougald  and  Archie  have  sold  the  land 
inherited  from  their  father,  and  squandered  the  money 
it  brought  them.  The  former  is  a  broken  man  depend 
ing  in  some  degree  upon  his  sister's  bounty  for  a  com 
fortable  home.  The  fractured  bones  resulting  from  his 
struggle  \vith  Brett  have  indirectly  served  to  prolong 
his  life  by  compelling  him  to  curb  his  passion  for 
strong  drink.  Archie,  if  living,  is  a  wanderer;  his 
old  acquaintances  of  Cranberry  have  lost  all  trace 
of  him.  Gertrude  has  for  eight  years  been  a  welcome 
guest  at  Cherry  Farm  in  the  family  of  her  cousin, 
Richard  Dundren.  If  common  rumor  may  be  relied 
upon  she  is  the  handsome,  estimable  and  wealthy  lady 
whom  the  distinguished  Mr.  Travis  proposes  to  en 
dow,  in  due  time,  with  his  name,  fortune  and  prospec 
tive  triumphs  in  law  and  politics.  The  people  in  that 
locality,  however,  differ  somewhat  as  to  which  of  the 
persons  named  is  to  be  the  gainer  by  the  contem 
plated  marriage.  Some  claiming  that  with  all  his 
money  and  splendid  prospects  the  honorable  Mr.  Tra 
vis  is  unworthy  of  such  a  woman.  Others  insist  that 
he  is  far  too  good  for  one  who  could  turn  her  back  on 
Rob  Brett  when  he  was  driven  to  desperation  by  love 
of  her.  But  it  should  be  known  that  this  adverse  crit 
icism  of  Gertrude  comes  wholly  from  the  few  personal 
friends  of  Rob  who  still  persist  in  remembering  him 
as  the  bravest  and  manliest,  but  possibly  the  most  im 
prudent  and  reckless  fellow  who  ever  set  foot  in  Cran- 
berrv  Countv. 


II 


SKED 

A  CCORDING  to  a  rule  of  alternation  thus  far  al- 
/V  ways  adhered  to  by  the  Democratic  party  in  that 
political  subdivision  of  the  state,  Cranberry  County 
\vas  entitled  to  the  candidate  for  Congress,  and  public 
sentiment  had  quietly  settled  upon  Richard  Dundren 
as  a  man  well  qualified  to  represent  the  district  and 
entirely  worthy  of  the  honor  of  a  nomination.  In 
business  affairs  he  had  for  years  been  recognized  as  a 
leader,  while  in  all  social  and  charitable  matters  his 
good  wife  was  deservedly  prominent.  Cherry  Farm, 
the  home  of  the  Dundrens,  was  a  pleasant  place  of 
a  thousand  acres,  with  a  spring  brook  rippling  in 
gentle  curves  across  it,  and  a  roomy  farm  house  stand 
ing  modestly  back  from  the  public  highway,  noted  in 
all  that  region  for  hospitality.  It  was  but  natural 
that  the  thoughts  of  the  honest  Democrats  of  an  agri 
cultural  district  should  center  upon  this  thrifty  and 
popular  farmer  when  seeking  a  suitable  person  to 
carry  the  party  banner  in  the  approaching  conflict. 

It  would  not  be  correct,  however,  to  conclude 
from  the  unanimity  with  which  Mr.  Dundren's  nomi 
nation  was  foreshadowed,  that  there  were  no  other 
aspirants  for  Congressional  honors  in  Cranberry  Coun 
ty.  Mr.  Travis'  ambition  in  this  direction  was  well 
known,  and  had  been  freely  discussed  by  his  political 
friends.  But  Mr.  Travis  was  a  lawyer  who,  for  sundry 
reasons,  was  not  popular  with  the  people.  In  the  first 
place  he  was  exceedingly  fond  of  money  and  never 

(13) 


14  UNCLE  PETER  SKED 

permitted  considerations  of  either  delicacy  or  honor  to 
interrupt  his  pursuit  of  it.  It  was  also  whispered  con 
fidentially  by  those  who  knew  him  best,  that  in  the 
practice  of  his  profession  he  had  not  only  taken  fees 
from  both  sides,  but  had  finally  deceived  both,  and  by 
ingenious  lying,  and  the  assistance  of  cheap  confed 
erates  swindled  the  creditor  who  employed  him  out 
of  nearly  the  full  value  of  a  just  claim,  and  then  en 
forced  its  collection  against  the  debtor  to  whom  he 
had  secretly  made  overtures  of  the  utmost  friendliness. 
He  did  not,  however,  confine  himself  exclusively  to 
the  law ;  on  the  contrary,  he  was  a  politician  of  the 
most  aggressive  character,  and  by  some  persons  be 
lieved  to  be  even  less  scrupulous  in  this  line  than  in 
the  practice  of  his  profession.  Indeed  his  enemies 
were  not  slow  to  affirm  that  he  was  eminent  not  only 
for  cunning  in  the  contrivance  of  schemes  of  political 
rascality,  but  for  boldness  in  their  execution,  and  that 
no  corrupt  job  was  ever  concocted  in  the  county  in 
which  he  did  not  have  a  hand  and  share.  It  should 
be  borne  in  mind,  however,  that  these  were  the  state 
ments  of  men  whose  defeat  at  the  polls  had  at  one  time 
or  another,  perhaps,  been  popularly  attributed  to  Mr. 
Travis'  superior  tact  and  energy. 

But  notwithstanding  all  that  may  have  been  said 
against  his  political  and  professional  methods,  it  must 
be  admitted  that  he  was  a  gentleman  of  good  form  and 
bearing,  whose  speech,  apparently,  was  the  essence  of 
sincerity  and  truthfulness.  He  was  shrewd  enough  at 
this  time  to  know  that  in  a  contest  with  Dundren  he 
could  look  forward  to  nothing  save  a  needless  ex 
penditure  of  money  and  a  humiliating  defeat;  but  if 
his  chances  of  success  had  been  ten-fold  greater  than 
they  were,  he  would  have  hesitated  to  make  any  open 


SKED  15 

opposition  to  his  more  popular  rival,  for  the  simple 
reason  that  he  was  a  suitor  for  the  hand  of  Gertrude 
Frazier,  and  any  interference  with  the  political  aspira 
tions  of  her  cousin  might  materially  abridge  his  oppor 
tunities  to  win  an  estimable  wife  and  handsome  for 
tune.  He  felt,  therefore,  that  the  wisest  thing  for  him 
to  do  under  the  circumstances,  was  to  unite  with  the 
majority  of  his  party  in  support  of  the  owner  of 
Cherry  Farm. 

This  in  brief  was  the  political  situation  in  Cran 
berry  when  a  man  who  had  no  more  respect  for  poli 
ticians  than  for  the  dust  he  trod  on,  and  no  more  influ 
ence  in  nominating  conventions  than  the  town  pump, 
appeared  on  the  scene  and  not  only  knocked  the  pre 
dictions  of  the  most  sagacious  all  awry,  but  thwarted 
the  popular  will,  and  compelled  it  to  accept  the  candi 
date  whom  it  least  desired. 

The  twenty-two  years  elapsed  since  Peter  Sked 
began  his  annual  visits  to  Cherry  Farm  have  wrought 
some  changes  in  him.  The  hair  which  at  fifty  was  just 
turning  gray  has  at  seventy-two  become  quite  white. 
The  bend  of  the  figure,  then  partly  affected,  has  now 
increased  to  a  real  and  permanent  deformity.  The 
habit  of  holding  audible  communion  with  himself  as 
if  he  were  falking  to  an  invisible  companion,  has  so 
grown  upon  him  that  in  these  discussions  he  frequently 
becomes  violent  and  profane. 

His  journeys  by  daylight  are  now  usually  limited 
to  sections  of  the  country  where,  if  the  people  know 
him  at  all,  they  only  know  him  as  a  persistent  and  dis 
gusting  beggar.  He  is  accustomed  to  darkness,  and 
often  travels  by  night.  He  rarely  sleeps  in  a  house  and 
never  does  so  when  it  would  cost  him  money,  or  any- 


16  UNCLE  PETER  SKED 

thing  which  by  possibility  could  be  exchanged  for  it. 
His  clothing  is  ragged  and  unclean,  tied  together  in 
places  by  such  bits  of  twine  as  he  has  been  able  to 
pick  up  in  his  wanderings.  He  wears  no  stockings, 
and  his  bony  and  dirty  ankles  are  visible  between  the 
flapping  upper  leather  of  his  shoes  and  the  ragged 
bottoms  of  his  too  scanty  trousers.  At  sunset  he  turns 
into  Dundren's  gate,  and  shuffling  up  to  the  front  door 
gives  the  knocker  such  a  sounding  as  might  serve  to 
startle  a  whole  neighborhood.  He  is  admitted  by  one 
of  the  children  of  the  house,  and  going  through  the 
hall  is  met  by  Mrs.  Dundren,  and  invited  to  seat  him 
self  in  an  arm  chair  which  she  places  near  her  own. 

"I  hope  you  are  well,  Cousin  Peter,"  said  she  as 
Peter  dropped  into  his  seat. 

"Never  better,  Helen  —  never  better.  Is  Dick  at 
home,  eh?" 

"Yes,  Richard  is  at  home,  Cousin  Peter." 

"Is  he  making  money,  Helen?  Can  he  pay  his 
debts  ?" 

"I  hope  so,"  she  answered  with  a  troubled  look; 
"but  I  sometimes  fear  Richard  has  undertaken  too 
much,  and  borrowed  .too  largely.  You  know  how 
hard  it  is  for  farmers  to  make  from  uncertain  crops 
enough  to  provide  for  the  certain  interest  which  grows 
nights  and  Sundays.  All  seasons  are  alike  good  for  it, 
but  many  seasons  leave  the  farmers'  bins  empty  at  the 
end  of  harvest  time." 

"Tut,  tut,  Helen,  what  makes  you  talk  so  of  in 
terest  ?  It's  a  mere  nothing  —  nothing.  A  man  may 
put  fifty  dollars  in  a  colt  and  sell  it  for  seventy-five 
or  a  hundred  the  next  month,  or  the  next  year.  What 
rate  per  cent,  is  that,  eh?  You  buy  a  sheep  in  the 
fall  for  two  dollars,  take  a  dollar's  worth  of  wool  off 


SKED  17 

it  in  the  spring,  and  then  sell  the  sheep  and  its  lamb  for 
three,  eh  ?  What  rate  per  cent,  is  that,  madam  ?  And 
yet  you  talk  as  if  a  poor  man  who  got  ten  dollars  for 
the  use  of  one  hundred  during  a  whole  year  —  a  whole 
year,  mind  —  was  a  robber.  Tut,  tut,  woman ;  you 
know  little  of  business.  The  farmer  buys  a  mare,  say, 
she  has  a  colt,  he  sells  the  mare  at  a  profit,  and  has 
the  colt  extra.  What  rate  per  cent,  is  that?  Eh? 
Come,  come,  no  nonsense,  Helen." 

The  subject  was  not  an  agreeable  one  to  Mrs. 
Dundren,  and  with  a  view  of  diverting  Peter's 
thoughts  from  it  she  said : 

"You  must  be  very  tired,  Cousin  Peter;  you  are 
such  a  rapid  walker,  and  you  always  walk." 

"What  are  legs  for,"  responded  Peter  sharply; 
''what  are  legs  for?  Eh?  To  straddle  and  wear  out 
a  horse  that  will  sell  for  a  hundred  dollars,  good 
money?  To  be  wheeled  about  in  a  carriage  that  may 
be  cost  three  hundred  ?  Nonsense  !  legs  were  made  to 
walk  with.  They're  cheaper  than  horseflesh  and  safer, 
mind  that,  madam,  cheaper  and  safer.  The  money 
some  men  spend  in  useless  riding  would  make  them 
rich  in  thirty  years;  mind  that,  eh?  Rich!" 

"But,  Cousin  Peter,  there's  much  to  live  for  be 
sides  money.  It  is  pleasant  to  have  nice  things  about 
you  —  to  have  books  and  horses  and  carriages,  and 
good  houses,  and  neat  and  comfortable  clothing, 
and 

"The  less  the  better,  madam.  They  wear  out  and 
are  gone  forever.  It's  sheer  waste ;  our  investments 
should  be  in  things  which  increase,  not  in  those  which 
diminish.  The  value  of  all  things  should  be  estimated 
by  the  income  in  ready  money  to  be  derived  from  them. 


18  UNCLE  PETER  SKED 

On  a  large  farm  like  this,  may  be,  you  spend  a  dollar 
a  day  which  might  be  saved.  How  much  at  simple 
interest  payable  annually  would  this  saving  amount  to 
in  fifty  years?  How  much?  One  hundred  thousand 
dollars!  No  trifling  sum,  Helen;  a  good  thing  to 
have,  madam." 

Mrs.  Dundren  made  no  reply  to  Peter's  disquisi 
tion  on  the  power  of  interest  and  the  importance  of 
economy  in  daily  expenditures,  and  after  a  moment's 
silence  he  asked : 

"Is  Dick  still  making  a  fool  of  himself  in  politics? 
Eh?" 

"He  is  a  candidate  for  Congress  and  quite  certain 
to  be  nominated  by  his  party,"  replied  Mrs.  Dundren, 
softly. 

"If  he  is  nominated  and  elected  will  it  bring  him 
money  to  pay  his  debts?"  asked  the  old  man  sharply. 
"Will  the  office  fetch  him  money  to  pay  his  debts, 
Helen?  That's  the  point,  eh?" 

"I  have  no  doubt  it  will,  Cousin  Peter,"  replied 
Mrs.  Dundren.  "The  salary  I  understand  is  large.  O, 
yes,  it  will  be  a  great  help  to  him." 

"I  don't  know',  madam ;  I  think  there  is  some 
doubt  about  it.  Offices  are  not  always  obtained  by 
those  who  want  them,  and  they  generally  cost  more 
than  they  are  worth  any  how." 

The  conversation  was  here  interrupted  by  the  en 
trance  of  a  tall,  strongly  built  man  of  perhaps  forty- 
five.  His  high  top  boots  suggested  that  he  had  been 
on  horseback,  and  his  ruddy  face  that  he  was  accus 
tomed  to  open  air  and  fond  of  bodily  exercise.  He 
was  in  the  prime  of  manhood  and  evidently  disposed 
to  get  all  the  comfort  out  of  life  attainable.  The  mo- 


SKED  19 

ment  he  caught  sight  of  his  wife's  cousin  he  called  out 
in  a  brusque,  good  natured  tone : 

"Hello,  Peter,  you  old  flint,  are  you  around" 
again?" 

"Yes,"  responded  Peter. 

"Nothing  so  certain  to  come  back  as  a  bad  penny. 
Confound  it,  man !  why  don't  you  buy,  beg  or  steal  a 
decent  and  comfortable  suit  of  clothes?" 

"I'm  too  honest  to  steal,"  replied  Peter;  "begging 
is  a  slow  business,  and  as  for  buying,  I  shall  do  that 
when  there's  no  better  manner  to  invest  what  little 
money  falls  in  my  way." 

The  supper  bell  now  rang,  and  Peter  was  invited 
to  the  dining  room.  After  partaking  of  a  hearty  meal 
they  returned  to  the  sitting  room,  when  Peter  opened 
the  conversation  rather  abruptly  by  declaring  that  he 
had  present  need  of  ready  money  and  must  insist  upon 
gathering  in  what  people  owed  him. 

"Cousin  Peter,"  said  Mrs.  Dundren  as  she  placed 
the  easy  chair  before  him,  "you  must  not  be  too  hard 
on  Richard." 

"But  Richard  must  pay  his  debts  in  money,"  re 
plied  the  old  man,  crustily ;  "promises  won't  an 
swer." 

"The  farm  is  good  for  it,  Peter,"  responded  Dun 
dren,  soberly.  "You  don't  need  the  money.  Why, 
confound  it,  man,  you  can't  find  any  body  who'll  pay 
you  a  bigger  interest  than  I  do." 

"Pay,  eh?  Did  you  say  pay?"  Peter's  small 
eyes  fairly  blazed.  "When  did  you  pay  interest? 
Pay!  Why,  I've  not  seen  a  copper  of  your  money,  not 
a  copper.  How  long  is  it  since  I  made  you  the  loan? 
How  long,  eh?" 


20  UNCLE  PETER  SKED 

"Twenty  years  or  more."  replied  Dundren,  medi 
tatively. 

"Twenty-one  years  last  corn  cutting,"  said  Sked 
with  emphasis.  "Nearly  twenty-two  years  and  not  a 
cent  of  either  principal  or  interest  has  come  back  to 
me." 

"But,"  began  Dundren  in  an  apologetic  tone  as  he 
walked  to  and  fro  across  the  room,  "you  never  pressed 
me  for  payment  before.  Peter ;  you  always  seemed  to 
prefer  my  note  for  the  amount  of  the  annual  interest. 
I  gave  you  what  you  appeared  to  desire  most.  I  could 
have  paid  you  the  interest  at  first  easily  enough,  for  at 
first  it  was  small  and  a  little  retrenchment  here  and 
there  in  house  and  farm  would  have  kept  things  even, 
but  you  never  seemed  to  want  it  then." 

''And  so  you  blame  me  for  my  leniency,  eh?  For 
my  kindness  of  heart  and  forbearance?"  cried  Sked  in 
a  rasping  voice,  "and  so  you  would " 

"No,  no,  Peter."  broke  in  Dundren  with  a  hearty 
laugh,  as  he  stopped  and  looked  the  old  man  in  the 
face;  "I  never  blamed  you  for  anything  of  that  sort. 
I  knew  you  had  no  more  heart  than  a  grindstone, 
Peter,  and  confound  you,  man !  I  don't  intend  to  be 
bullied  by  you  now.  You  have  my  notes  of  hand ;  the 
debt  is  an  honest  one,  at  least  as  honest  as  any  debt  is 
where  usury  is  piled  on  usury,  and  then  usuriously 
compounded " 

"What!  what!  you  plead  usury?  Eh?"  If  there 
was  ever  murder  in  Sked's  flashing  eyes  it  was  there 
at  this  moment.  "You  plead  the  baby  act,  eh  ?" 

"Hold,  you  old  flint!"  said  Dundren  sternly;  "I 
plead  nothing  except  a  willingness  to  sell  the  clothes 
off  my  back  to  pay  your  claim  in  full.  I  am  proud  to 
say  my  fathers  for  two  hundred  years  have  paid  their 


SKEI)  21 

debts.  I  shall  pay  mine.  Your  money  has  come  to  me 
so  easily  —  at  first  indeed  without  solicitation,  and  at 
last  by  renewals  of  the  original  sum  and  interest  — 
that  I  have  been  led  to  do  many  things  I  should  not 
have  done  - —  that  a  prudent  man  would  not  have  done 
who  expected  to  be  called  on  suddenly  to  pay  the  debt. 
This  house  has  been  built  when  a  cheaper  one  would 
have  sheltered  us  as  well ;  I  have  made  investments  in 
lands  and  blooded  cattle  which  a  discreet  man  would 
not  ordinarily  have  done  with  borrowed  money ;  I 
have  entered  upon  a  system  of  underdraining,  the  cost 
of  which  I  can  not  hope  to  get  back  at  once,  and  I 
confess  to  many  expenditures  arid  small  extravagan 
cies  into  which  I  have  been  drawn  gradually,  and  al 
most  unconsciously,  by  having  in  possession  more 
ready  money  and  more  property  than  really  belonged 
to  me,  for  men  who  seem  rich  must  act  as  rich  men 
should  if  they  would  avoid  the  reputation  of  being 
mean  and  niggardly  —  I  have  endeavored  to  avoid 
this ;  I  could  not  bear  to  have  my  neighbors  think  so 
ill  of  me " 

"I  see,  I  see,"  broke  in  Sked  impatiently,  "I  have 
been  to  blame  for  all  your  troubles.  This  is  the  sub 
stance  of  your  argument,  eh?  I  should  not  have 
made  the  loan  to  you  at  all,  but  after  committing  the 
first  offense.  I  should  have  pressed  you  for  the  annual 
interest  instead  of  allowing  it  to  accumulate  from  year 
to  year.  I  see,  I  see,  I  made  a  mistake  when  I  sought 
to  do  a  kindness.  It  shall  not  be  repeated." 

Rising  from  his  chair  and  pointing  his  long  bony 
finger  at  Dundren,  he  cried,  angrily :  "It  shall  not  be 
repeated  ;  pay  me  —  pay  me  what  you  owe  me,  sir.  I 
want  money  and  must  have  it." 

''Cousin  Peter,"  interposed  Mrs.  Dundren  sooth- 


22  UNCLE  PETER  SKED 


>  "Richard  did  not  mean  to  offend  you  ;  he  simply 
sought  to  make  an  apology  for  his  own  shortcomings 
—  not  his  alone,  but  mine  also,  all  he  asks  now  is  a 
little  time  -  " 

"No,  no,"  Sked  answered  hotly.  "If  I  were  to 
grant  more  time  it  would  be  heaping  injury  on  injury. 
Come  now,  I  see  how  it  is,  eh?  My  money  has  made 
your  husband  the  great  farmer  —  the  great  man  of 
the  county.  It  has  even  suggested  to  him  that  he 
should  play  the  role  of  statesman,  and  now  I  am  a 
robber  because  I  ask  that  my  own  shall  be  returned 
to  me  ;  because  its  restitution  will  take  your  husband 
down  a  peg  in  the  estimation  of  the  people.  I  have 
heard  such  talk  before,  madam.  It  has  always  sat 
isfied  me  the  time  had  come  when  I  should  have  my 
own."  Turning  from  wife  to  husband,  he  continued  : 
"Pay  your  debt  and  I  shall  give  you  no  further  cause 
to  censure  me." 

The  idea  of  making  immediate  payment  was  so 
absurdly  impossible  that,  sober  as  he  had  been  hither 
to,  Dundren  could  not  refrain  from  laughter,  and  when 
he  laughed,  like  the  strong  man  he  was,  he  did  so 
heartily. 

The  old  man's  anger  instantly  forsook  him;  his 
heart  was  clutched  with  the  terrible  suspicion  that  by 
some  dishonest  transfer  of  property  Dundren  had  ren 
dered  himself  execution  proof,  and  was  therefore  in 
condition  to  laugh  at  his  creditors. 

"Is  my  demand  for  payment  so  very  amusing  to 
you?"  he  said  quietly  as  he  sat  down.  "Does  it  strike 
you  as  a  matter  to  be  laughed  at  ?  Eh  ?" 

"It  does,"  replied  Dundren,  placing  a  chair  near 
Sked,  and  seating  himself  in  it.  "How  much  do  I  owe 
you,  Peter?" 


SKED  23 

"You  should  know  —  your  books  should  tell,"  said 
Peter  with  returning  courage. 

"And  so  will  the  bills.  I  have  not  thought  it 
worth  while  to  keep  the  account.  I  knew  you  would 
do  it." 

"The  question  is  easily  answered,"  said  the  old 
man,  fishing  from  his  underclothing  a  soiled  handker 
chief  tied  into  many  knots,  from  one  of  which  he  took 
a  greasy  wallet  and  from  this  a  little  package  of  dirty 
papers.  "Here  the  notes  are.  Principal  and  interest 
amount  to  a  little  over  eighty  thousand,  sir.  Would 
you  like  to  verify  the  calculations  ?  Eh  ?" 

"No,  I'll  take  your  word  for  it?"  said  Dtmdren, 
soberly.  "The  sum  twenty-one  years  ago  last  October 
was  ten  thousand.  Interest  at  ten  per  cent,  com 
pounded  annually  and  working  night  and  day,  amounts 
to  something,  Peter." 

"I  could  have  loaned  the  money  at  twelve  per 
cent.,"  said  Peter,  eagerly.  "I  could  have  loaned  it  to 
a  hundred  men  as  good  as  you  at  twelve  —  to  better 
men,  in  fact." 

"To  wiser  men,  perhaps  —  to  men  who  would 
have  made  better  use  of  the  money,  to  men  more  able 
to  pay  it  back,"  replied  Dundren,  sadly,  "but  to  none 
more  anxious  to  do  so,  Peter." 

Sked's  heart  sank,  and  his  knees  began  to  shake 
again,  as  he  asked  : 

"What  do  you  mean,  sir?  Do  you  mean  to  say 
you  can't  pay  me?" 

"I  mean  to  say  I  can't  do  it  now,  Peter.  It  would 
be  impossible  to  do  it  suddenly  without  stripping  me 
of  all  I  have,  and  turning  my  family  out  of  doors." 

"Would  you  be  left  in  any  worse  condition  than 


24  UNCLE  PETER  SKED 

others  —  than  many  others  ?  Are  not  the  lands,  horses 
and  cattle  really  mine,  not  yours  ?" 

"They  were  not  when  I  made  the  original  loan," 
replied  Dundren,  thoughtfully ;  "I  had  something 
then ;  I  certainly  had  five  hundred  acres  of  good  land 
and  was  out  of  debt.  Now  I  have  a  thousand  acres 
and  owe  this  great  sum.  The  interest  has  won  them 
all  to  you  —  surely  all  if  you  press  me  now." 

"Well,  well,  no  man  can  blame  me  for  asking  my 
own.  You  have  already  reminded  me  that  I  have  in 
dulged  you  too  long.  The  interest  is  accumulating  at 
the  rate  of  eight  thousand  a  year.  If  the  burden  is 
heavy  now,  it  will  be  heavier  still  a  year  hence.  You 
must  pay.  Give  me  what  belongs  to  me  and  accept 
yourself  what  belongs  to  you.  Right's  right,  and  right 
wrongs  no  man,  eh?" 

"Will  you  buy  the  farm.  Peter?  Come,  now, 
make  me  a  fair  offer  for  it." 

"I'm  not  a  farmer;  I'm  too  old  for  farming," 
said  Sked  thoughtfully.  ''If  I  were  to  buy,  it  would 
be  to  sell  again,  and  it  might  be  years  before  I  could 
find  a  purchaser.  In  the  meantime  the  farm  would  not 
pay  the  interest  on  my  money.  No,  no,  I  do  not  want 
land  and  live  stock.  The  seasons  are  too  uncertain 
to  make  the  one  profitable,  and  the  other  eat  their 
heads  off  before  you  know  it.  I  shall  not  buy." 

"Give  me  a  few  months'  time  and  I'll  find  sale  lor 
it,  or  at  least  for  enough  of  it  to  pay  your  claim." 

"A  fewr  months  —  a  few  months,"  returned  the 
old  man,  angrily,  "no,  no;  men  have  sold  farms  and 
put  the  money  in  their  pockets  —  or  their  wives'  pock 
ets,  beyond  reach  of  the  sheriff,  in  a  few  months. 
Give  me  a  mortgage  to  secure  my  claim,  and  I'll  wait  a 
few  months,  but  not  otherwise  —  a  mortgage  on  land, 


SKED  25 

farming  implements  and  live  stock.  I  have  been  too 
indulgent  in  this  matter,  too  careless  and  confiding. 
Your  two  months  is  but  a  trick  to  swindle  me." 

Dundren  heard  him  through,  but  almost  before 
the  last  words  were  fairly  uttered  he  turned  fiercely 
on  the  old  man,  and  seizing  him  by  the  coat,  gave  a 
sudden  jerk  which  would  have  brought  him  to  his 
feet  if  the  rotten  garment  had  not  given  way.  Mrs. 
Dundren  put  herself  between  them,  and  begged  her 
husband  to  be  quiet. 

"No,  no,"  cried  Sked  in  an  aggrieved  tone,  "let 
him  murder  an  old  man  if  he  will.  May  be  he  thinks 
it  an  easy  way  to  pay  an  honest  debt.  Let  him  do  it 
if  he  wants  to." 

"Murder  you !"  exclaimed  Dundren,  indignantly ; 
"no,  no,  I  will  not  do  that,  but  I  shall  allow  no  man 
to  sit  in  my  own  house — 

"You  mean  my  house,  eh?"  interjected  Sked  snap 
pishly. 

" in  anybody's  house,"  continued  Dundren, 

"and  insinuate  that  I  am  a  thief  who  seeks  an  oppor 
tunity  to  defraud  his  creditors.  I  shall  not  stand  it 
from  any  one,  old  or  young." 

"Richard,  say  no  more,"  pleaded  Mrs.  Dundren, 
"I  beg  you  to  say  no  more,  and  let  me  show  Cousin 
Peter  to  his  room." 

"No,"  said  Dundren  firmly,  "he  shall  neither  eat 
nor  sleep  in  this  house  until  I  cease  to  occupy  it.  I 
shall  not  be  bullied  and  insulted  by  him  again.  If  he 
does  not  leave  at  once  of  his  own  accord,  I  shall  kick 
him  out." 

"Let  him  kick,"  said  Sked  in  a  half  injured,  half 
defiant  tone;  "I  have  been  kicked  before  —  Robert 


26  UNCLE  PETER  SKED 

Brett  could  have  told  you  how  much  it  costs  to  kick 
me,  eh  ?" 

"Yes,  you  vindictive  wretch,  you  stony-hearted 
fiend,"  cried  Dundren  thrusting  his  wife  aside  and 
grasping  Sked's  arm.  "He  knew  and  I  know  how  you 
pursued  him  day  and  night  with  unrelenting  cruelty, 
until  you  had  impoverished  him,  broken  the  heart  of 
his  wife,  your  sister,  and  made  their  child  —  your 
nephewr  —  a  penniless  wanderer.  We  all  know  the  ter 
rible  story,  and  if  there  is  one  place  in  hell  hotter  than 
another,  it  is  the  place  you  deserve  to  occupy  for  your 
conduct  in  that  very  case.  Now  gather  up  your  bag 
gage  and  get  out,  or  I  shall  do  precisely  what  Robert 
Brett  did  twenty  years  ago,  and  was  justified  in  doing. 
To-night  I  am  master  here.  Come,  stir  yourself  more 
nimbly.  If  there  was  a  shilling  in  sight  you  would 
go  toward  it  fast  enough." 

"And  I'll  go  toward  the  money  you ' 

"Yes,  and  you'll  get  it  —  every  penny  of  it.  My 
children  shall  never  be  compelled  to  admit  that  their 
father  did  not  pay  his  debts.  Go!" 

"He  has  torn  my  coat,"  whined  Sked,  as  Mrs. 
Dundren  handed  him  his  hat  and  umbrella.  "It's  a 
pretty  condition  he  has  left  me  in  to  face  the  dews  of 
night  in  a  malarious  season.  This  is  hospitality,  eh?" 

"Here,  take  this,"  cried  Dundren,  stripping  off  his 
own  coat  and  throwing  it  after  the  retreating  man. 

Sked  picked  up  the  garment  from  the  floor,  and 
although  it  was  too  large  for  him,  went  off  with  it.  He 
cared  not  the  snap  of  one's  finger  whether  it  fitted  him 
or  not,  but  was  pleased  to  know  it  cost  him  nothing, 
and  was  worth  something.  When  the  front  door 
closed  against  him,  and  he  was  shuffling  down  the 
walk  to  the  public  road  two  lively  dogs  caught  sight 


SKED  27 

of  him  and,  concluding  he  was  an  enemy,  started  in 
pursuit  with  such  impetuosity  and  noise  that  Peter, 
striking  about  him  vigorously  with  his  umbrella,  ex 
claimed  : 

"Confound  the  dogs,  and  dod-blast  their  keepers. 
I  don't  wonder  they  can't  make  ends  meet  at  this 
house.  I  believe  they  keep  a  thousand  worthless 
curs." 


Ill 

MR.  TRAVIS 

WHEN  Peter  emerged  from  the  trees  and  shrubs 
which  darkened  the  lawn  of  the  Dundren 
homestead,  he  found  the  sky  clear  and  the  light  suf 
ficient  to  enable  him  to  pick  his  way  without  difficulty 
along  the  public  road.  It  might  be  supposed  by  one 
who  had  heard  his  discussion  with  Dundren,  and  knew 
the  manner  of  his  exit  from  that  gentleman's  comfort 
able  house,  that  just  now  he  would  not  be  in  a  very 
amiable  mood ;  but  not  so.  As  he  trudged  on  in  the 
darkness,  his  mind  was  active,  and  his  busy  tongue 
gave  ready  utterance  to  his  thoughts.  He  was,  indeed, 
congratulating  himself  on  the  fortunate  termination 
of  the  interview.  He  did  not  want  his  money,  but  he 
had  sense  enough  to  know  the  farm,  fertile  and  valu 
able  as  it  was,  would  not  much  longer  afford  security 
for  his  claim.  Up  to  this  time  it  had  been  abundantly 
good  for  all  the  money  loaned,  and  the  accumulations 
of  interest.  If  sold  now  in  a  hard  market,  it  could  be 
made  to  pay  the  debt,  but  if  disposed  of  a  year  or  two 
hence,  even  in  a  more  favorable  time,  it  would  prob 
ably  not  fetch  enough  more  than  at  present  to  pay  the 
additional  interest.  What  he  most  desired,  therefore, 
was  an  open  rupture  with  his  debtor  to  prepare  the 
way  somewhat  for  the  immediate  collection  of  the 
claim.  It  is  not  easy  for  even  the  hardest  creditor  to 
turn  a  debtor  out  of  doors,  who  has  as  a  rule  treated 
him  with  courtesy.  Still  Sked  would  not  ordinarily 

(28) 


MR.  TRAVIS  29 

have  hesitated  to  do  this ;  in  fact,  he  had  done  it 
many  times,  but  in  this  instance  the  debtor's  wife  was 
his  own  cousin,  who  had  always  welcomed  him  to  her 
house  and  given  him  good  dinners,  soft  beds,  and  re 
spectful  entertainment.  Under  the  circumstances, 
therefore,  it  was  particularly  gratifying  to  have  her 
husband  lay  violent  hands  on  him,  and  threaten  to 
forcibly  eject  him  from  the  premises. 

It  was  but  an  hour's  walk  from  Cherry  Farm  to 
the  county  seat.  When  Sked  reached  the  village  its 
shops  were  still  open  and  many  people  on  the  street. 
Going  directly  to  the  second  floor  of  a  business  block, 
he  walked  along  the  dimly  lighted  hall  until  he  came 
to  the  room  he  sought.  Opening  the  door  he  entered. 
It  was  an  attorney's  office. 

"  'Squire  Travis,"  said  Peter  to  the  man  he  found 
writing  at  a  table,  "you  know  me,  don't  you?" 

"Certainly ;  but  what  brings  you  here  at  this 
hour?  I  have  no  time  to  waste,  and  no  alms  to  give." 

"Business,"  said  Sked  emphatically,  "important  to 
you  and  to  me." 

"Well,  well,  it  will  keep  until  morning.  I  am  en 
gaged  to-night  in  the  preparation  of  an  important 
case.  Call  at  nine  to-morrow,  and  I  will  hear  what 
you  have  to  say." 

"No,  you  must  hear  me  to-night  if  you  hear  me 
at  all,"  said  Sked  firmly.  "Five  minutes  will  do;  if 
you  can't  spare  the  time,  I  shall  look  for  some  one 
else." 

The  lawyer  was  annoyed  by  the  interruption,  but 
he  laid  down  his  pen,  and  pointing  to  a  chair,  said : 

"There,  sit  down ;  now  make  it  short." 

"I  have  a  claim  against  a  farmer  of  this  county, 
and  desire  suit  begun  for  its  collection." 


30  UNCLE  PETER  SKED 

"Of  what  amount?" 

"Over  eighty  thousand  dollars,"  replied  Peter. 

"Against  whom?" 

"One  of  the  wealthiest  men  of  the  county,  or 
rather  one  who  is  supposed  to  be,"  said  Peter.  "A 
claim  against  a  responsible  man,  sir." 

"Have  you  the  evidence  of  it  with  you?" 

"I  have  the  man's  notes  of  hand;  he  will  not 
resist  payment.  There  will  be  no  contest.  The  pro 
ceedings  will  be  simply  matters  of  form,  requiring  no 
more  legal  knowledge  and  no  more  labor  than  if  the 
sum  to  be  collected  were  a  hundred  dollars.  I  want  to 
know  first  what  you  will  charge  for  making  the  col 
lection.  It  is  always  best  to  have  an  understanding 
when  we  begin  so  there  may  be  no  misunderstanding 
when  we  end,  eh?  Now,  how  much  for  preparing 
the  petition,  and,  when  the  time  comes,  asking  judg 
ment  in  the  case?  How  much?" 

"The  claim,  you  say,  is  for  eighty  thousand,"  said 
Mr.  Travis,  eyeing  the  old  man  sharply. 

"More,  more,"  said  Sked.  "If  figured  up  to-day  it 
would  amount  to  eighty-two  or  eighty-three  thousand." 

"The  ordinary  fee  would  be  five  per  cent.,  but  on 
so  large  a  sum  I  would  make  it  three  provided  the 
case  is  not  litigated." 

"What !"  shouted  Sked,  "twenty-five  hundred  dol 
lars  for  an  hour's  work?  Why,  man.  you're  either 
crazy  or  you  think  I  am." 

"No,"  replied  Travis  coolly,  "  I  am  entirely  sane, 
and  I  hope  you  are,  but  you  must  bear  in  mind  the 
years  spent  in  the  labor  of  qualifying  myself  for  doing 
this  hour's  work.  You  must  remember,  also,  the  grave 
responsibility  I  assume  in  seeing  it  done  properly. 
You  should  understand,  also,  that  the  debtor  may  be 


MR,  TRAVIS  31 

a  friend,  and  by  accepting  a  case  against  him  I  may 
lose  his  patronage.  You  should  be  aware,  also,  that 
the  work  of  pressing  debtors  is  not  regarded  favor 
ably  by  the  people,  and  may  lose  me  many  clients 

"Dod-blast  it,  man,"  cried  Sked  impatiently  while 
reaching  for  his  umbrella,  "I  know  all  this  and  all  you 
could  tell  me  if  you  talked  till  midnight.  I  tell  you 
flatly  I  shall  pay  no  such  fee.  It's  robbery,  downright 
robbery  —  that's  what  it  is." 

"Well,  well,  you  can,  of  course,  do  as  you  please. 
What  do  you  say  to  sixteen  hundred?  That  would  be 
but  two  per  cent,  on  eighty  thousand.  I  don't  say  I'd 
do  it,  but  I'd  think  about  it;  what  do  you  say?" 

The  old  man  had  risen  and  was  moving  to  the 
door. 

"I  should  say  I  wouldn't  give  it,  nor  the  half  of  it, 
nor  the  quarter  of  it.  A  man  better  let  his  money  go 
uncollected  than  be  robbed  of  it  in  that  way." 

Mr.  Travis  now  quit  his  chair,  intending  to  get  rid 
of  his  visitor  as  soon  as  possible,  and  began  inwardly 
to  condemn  himself  for  permitting  the  disagreeable  old 
man  to  remain  so  long;  but  just  then  it  occurred  to 
him  that  he  would  like  to  know  who  owed  so  large  a 
sum.  The  information  might  be  made  profitable  in 
sundry  ways.  He  could  tell  the  debtor  he  had  refused 
the  case,  and  thus  perhaps  obtain  a  larger  fee  than 
Sked  would  pay,  by  advising  him  to  contest  the  claim, 
and  so  postpone  the  payment  of  it,  a  scheme  dishonest 
debtors  often  resort  to  in  order  to  gain  time  in  which 
to  sell  their  property  and  pocket  the  proceeds,  or  turn 
them  over  to  their  wives.  With  these  thoughts  upper 
most  in  his  mind,  Travis  said  softly : 

"Of  course,  Mr.  Sked,  if  I  knew  who  the  debtor 
was  we  might  perhaps  agree  on  terms.  In  asking  me 


32  UNCLE  PETER  SKED 

to  accept  a  case  you  should  in  all  fairness  tell  me  the 
facts  relating  to  it  before  you  go  so  far  as  to  accuse 
me  of  an  attempt  to  rob  you.  There  are  some  men  I 
should  not  like  to  take  a  case  against  for  any  fee,  how 
ever  large  it  might  be.  In  fact,  there  are  men  to  whom 
I  am  under  obligations,  and  against  whom  as  an  honest 
man  I  could  not  appear.  Tell  me  the  name  of  the 
debtor  and  if  we  agree  at  all  we  shall  do  so  instantly." 

Sked  had  been  standing  with  his  hand  on  the 
door-knob,  and  when  the  lawyer  concluded,  answered : 

"Richard  Dundren." 

"Hold  on !  Come  back ;  sit  down.  Let  me  see 
the  notes,  we  shall  agree  on  terms." 

The  old  man  put  his  hat  and  umbrella  on  the 
floor  again,  and  then  unbuttoning  his  coat  and  shirt, 
drew  out  the  greasy  handkerchief,  which  at  an  earlier 
hour  he  had  produced  at  Dundren's  house.  Extricat 
ing  from  one  of  its  many  knots  the  notes  of  hand,  he 
desired  to  have  collected,  he  showed  them  to  Travis. 
The  lawyer  recognized  Dundren's  signature  at  once. 
He  had  never  before  seen  it  attached  to  a  promissory 
note.  Here  was  an  opportunity  to  pull  down  his  rival 
and  secure  a  nomination  for  Congress.  In  availing 
himself  of  it,  however,  his  hand,  for  several  reasons, 
must  not  be  seen.  He  must  not  do  anything  to  give 
offense  to  Gertrude  Frazier.  Again,  if  he  were  to 
prosecute  a  case  against  Dundren,  there  might  spring 
up  a  feeling  of  sympathy  with  the  farmer,  which,  in 
an  agricultural  district,  would  render  his  own  election 
impossible. 

But  these  difficulties  could  be  easily  avoided.  Any 
one  of  a  half  dozen  attorneys  of  small  practice  would 
be  glad  to  do  the  business  for  him,  and  ostensibly 
assume  all  the  responsibility.  It  was  very  clear  to  the 


MR.  TRAVIS  33 

mind  of  this  wily  politician  that,  after  the  commence 
ment  of  the  suit  Dundren  could  not  expend  the  money 
requisite  to  enable  him  to  succeed,  and  for  this  reason 
would  probably  at  once  withdraw  from  the  contest. 

"I'll  do  this  work,"  said  Travis,  "on  your  own 
terms  upon  one  condition." 

"What  condition?" 

"That  I  shall  be  permitted  to  put  it  in  the  hands 
of  another  lawyer  and  not  appear  in  the  case  myself." 

Peter  never  had  much  confidence  in  men,  and  now 
suspected  this  was  a  trick  to  cheat  him ;  but  the  lawyer 
was  sharp  enough  to  divine  the  thought  uppermost  in 
the  old  man's  mind,  and  therefore  continued : 

"I  shall  receipt  to  you  for  the  notes.  Without 
your  endorsement  they  would  be  valueless  to  any  one 
but  yourself,  and  the  judgment  must  necessarily  be 
rendered  on  them  in  your  favor.  I  shall  be  responsi 
ble  to  you  for  the  proper  management  of  the  business, 
and  will  draw  up  the  petition  myself.  All  I  ask  is  to 
have  another  appear  of  record  as  the  attorney  in  the 
case ;  and  I  am  free  to  say  to  you  I  desire  this  simply 
because  I  cannot  afford  to  offend  Dundren  and  drive 
away  his  friends  by  appearing  against  him,  and  yet  I 
desire  as  much  as  you  that  the  matter  shall  be  pushed 
at  once." 

"Well,  well,"  said  Sked,  "I  don't  care  who  appears 
as  the  attorney,  so  the  business  is  properly  done  — 
that  is  all  I  want." 

"Shall  I  take  the  case?" 

Sked's  little  eyes  blazed  like  coals  of  fire  as  he 
asked : 

"On  what  terms?     How  much?     Eh?" 


34  UNCLE  PETEE  SEED 

"Say  five  hundred  dollars.  This  would  be  one- 
fifth  the  usual  fee." 

"No." 

"Two  hundred  and  fifty.  This  would  not  pay 
for  the  responsibility  I  assume,  to  say  nothing  of  the 
labor." 

"No." 

"One  hundred.  This  would  be  nothing,  really 
nothing  for  the  collection  of  so  large  a  sum." 

"No." 

"Fifty!  I  should  be  compelled  to  pay  treble  this 
amount  to  my  assistant." 

"No." 

"Why,  my  gad !  man,  what  do  you  expect  to  have 
it  done  for?"  exclaimed  the  lawyer,  now  thoroughly 
angry. 

"An  hour's  work  is,  may  be  worth  a  shilling,'"' 
replied  Sked  calmly;  "a  dollar  would  be  exorbitant." 

''We  shall  not  dispute  about  trifles,"  said  Travis, 
trying  to  conceal  his  vexation.  "I'll  do  it  for  a  dollar." 

"I'll  see.  I'll  see.  I  shall  be  around  again  in  a 
month  or  two,"  responded  Sked,  "and  will  perhaps  call 
on  you  again.  It  would  not  be  entirely  fair  to  spoil 
Dundren's  chances  of  a  nomination.  Eh?  He  is  my 
cousin,  you  know,  by  marriage,  and  I  have  a  good 
deal  of  family  pride,  and  \vould  like  to  have  my  cousin 
in  Congress,  and  may  be  when  he  draws  his  salary  he 
will  be  better  prepared  to  pay  his  debts." 

"Well.  I'll  be  d d,"  cried  Travis  in  a  towering 

rage.  "What  do  you  mean  you  dirty,  old  fool,  by 
thrusting  yourself  in  here  and  wasting  my  time.  I 
thought  you  wanted  the  claim  collected.  I  thought — 

"I  do,"  said  Sked,  coolly,  for  he  was  not  at  all 


ME.  TRAVIS  35 

deficient  in  courage,  and  did  not  propose  to  be  intimi 
dated. 

"Then  what  do  you  mean  by  this  trifling?"  con 
tinued  the  lawyer  savagely;  "this  wasting  of  an  hour 
or  more  of  my  valuable  time." 

%<I  mean  to  say  it  would  be  money  in  your  pocket 
to  make  the  collection,  eh  ?  It  would  give  you  the  lead 
in  the  race  for  Congress,  eh  ?  Do  you  understand  ?  It 
would  put  your  most  formidable  competitor  out  of 
the  way.  That's  what  I  mean,  eh?" 

The  lawyer  was  amazed  at  the  impudence,  shrewd 
ness  and  meanness  of  his  client,  but  he  understood 
him  now,  and  therefore  said : 

"Very  well,  I'll  give  you  fifty  dollars." 

"Make  it  one  hundred  and  draw  up  the  contract. 
Ready  money,  cash  in  hand.  'Squire,  you  know  it 
will  save  you  a  thousand." 

"All  right,  I'll  do  it." 

On  this  basis  the  contract  for  the  collection  of  the 
claim  against  Dundren  was  drawn  up,  carefully  super 
vised  by  Sked,  and  signed  by  the  lawyer.  Then  the 
one  hundred  dollars  were  paid  over,  tied  up  in  the 
handkerchief  and  carefully  secreted  in  the  old  man's 
clothes. 

One  might  naturally  conclude  that  Sked  left  the 
lawyer's  office  in  the  best  of  humor,  chuckling  over 
the  transaction  of  profitable  business,  but  such  a  con 
clusion  would  be  far  from  correct.  He  was  angry 
with  himself  for  not  insisting  upon  five  hundred  dol 
lars  instead  of  one. 

"Dod-blast  it !"  he  exclaimed  as  he  trudged  down 
the  middle  of  the  street  on  his  way  to  the  country,  "he 
would  have  given  five  hundred  and  then  would  have 
saved  much  money.  I  was  too  fast;  I  committed 


36  UNCLE  PETER  SKED 

myself  too  quick;  I  should  have  stood  out  for  three 
hundred  more  at  least  —  certainly  two.  I  have  lost 
much  money  to-night  by  my  senseless  haste.  Why, 
dod-blast  it!  Peter,"  he  cried,  shaking  his  umbrella 
angrily,  "you're  a  fool,  eh!  an  extravagant  fool! 
You've  lost  four  hundred  dollars  to-night;  two  hun 
dred  at  the  very  least.  I  am  sure  he  would  have  paid 
three  more,  Peter.  It  would  have  been  a  great  saving 
to  him  to  have  paid  four,  but  I'll  put  the  loss  at  three. 
Three  hundred  in  seven  years  would  have  amounted 
to  six,  in  fourteen  to  twelve,  in  twenty-one  to  twenty- 
four,  in  twenty-eight  to  forty-eight,  in  thirty-five  to 
ninety-six,  in  forty-two  to  nineteen  thousand  two  hun 
dred,  in  forty-nine  to  thirty-eight  thousand  four  hun 
dred.  Why  dod-blast  it,  man,  you've  lost  a  fortune 
this  very  night.  You've  allowed  the  lawyer  to  rob  you, 
sir!  You  must  do  better  than  this,  Peter,  or  you'll 
die  in  a  poor-house.  You  should  have  a  guardian; 
you're  not  competent  to  make  a  bargain,  you're  a  fool 
in  business."  Then  the  old  man's  voice  softened  to  a 
pleading  and  pathetic  whine  as  he  continued :  "Sked, 
you're  too  hard  on  me.  I  am  quite  sure  if  I  had  not 
made  the  offer  I  did  while  he  was  hot  and  eager  to 
crush  his  rival,  he  would  have  given  nothing.  I  think, 
good  sir,  I  had  reached  the  point  where  it  was  well  to 
strike  and  not  stop  to  higgle  for  a  larger  sum.  I'm 
quite  sure  if  I  had  stuck  for  more  he  would  have 
kicked  me  out."  And  now  we  hear  an  admonitory  and 
scoffing  voice  :  "Bah  !  Peter,  you're  soft,  and  liable  to 
be  plucked  right  and  left  by  all  who  desire  to  feather 
their  nests  from  the  body  of  an  innocent  goose. 
Kicked  you  out,  eh?  No,  no,  he  never  kicks  in  the 
light.  I  know  the  honorable  Andrew  Jackson  Travis, 
son  of  old  Billy  Travis,  the  Tumbletown  butcher,  very 


MR.  TRAVIS  H7 

well.  He  might  wish  for  your  death  and  burial,  or  rob 
you  if  he  could  without  risk  of  detection,  but  he  would 
do  nothing  he  thought  could  by  possibility  subject  him 
to  bodily  harm.  He  likes  to  feel  that  his  bones  are 
whole  and  his  skin  not  ruptured ;  in  short,  he  prides 
himself  on  being  a  statesman,  not  a  fighter.  He  might 
have  frozen  you  out  by  an  assumption  of  icv  dignity, 
Peler,  or  lie  might  have  reminded  you  that  it  was 
growing  late,  but  his  courage  would  never  have  lifted 
him  to  the  height  of  a  kick.  No,  Peter,  you  made  a 
mistake  in  not  insisting  upon  at  least  four  hundred." 
The  tone  of  the  old  man  became  plaintive  now:  "It 
may  be  as  you  say,  Sked ;  it  doubtless  is  as  you  say, 
good  sir,  and  I'll  be  on  my  guard  hereafter,  on  my 
guard,  sir."  Then  with  a  voice  of  stern  authority  he 
continued  :  "You  must  make  good  the  loss  of  this 
night,  Peter.  Mark  you,  man,  we  can  not  stand  such 
losses ;  they  will  break  us  up." 

Sked  had  by  this  time  traveled  beyond  the  scat 
tering  houses  of  the  suburbs  and  reached  the  farms. 
It  was  a  clear  night  and  innumerable  stars  sparkled 
in  the  dark  vault  overhead.  As  he  pressed  on  now 
talking  to  himself  as  was  his  habit,  and  at  times  re 
lapsing  into  silence,  he  heard  the  bleating  of  a  lamb 
in  a  field  near  by,  and  soon  thereafter  a  dog  came 
charging  toward  him,  barking  furiously,  and  this  dis 
turbed  the  sleepy  cows  lying  in  the  dusty  highway, 
near  the  barns,  where  night  and  morning  they  were 
milked.  All  this  took  Sked's  thoughts  back  to  Dun- 
dren's,  and  he  began  to  talk  about  the  farm. 

"It's  a  good  farm  —  the  best  in  the  county,  by 
odds,  and  a  full  thousand  acres,  a  little  more  in  fact, 
for  there  was  a  surplus  in  the  tract  last  purchased." 
Then  after  a  pause  his  tone  changed  to  one  of  expostu- 


38  UNCLE  PETEK  SKED 

lation  and  mild  censure.  "Sked,  you  are  too  hard, 
good  sir;  it's  a  nice  family,  and  Helen  is  the  child  of 
your  own  father's  sister;  you  should  not  be  hard  on 
her  and  hers ;  you  should  not,  truly."  Then  came 
another  change  indicating  some  slight  exasperation. 
"Peter,  you  are  a  soft-hearted  fool.  Is  it  hard,  do  you 
say.  for  a  man  to  claim  what  belongs  to  him  ?  Xo,  no, 
Peter,  you're  wide  of  the  mark,  as  usual ;  it  would 
be  wrong  not  to  do  so.  It  wrould  be  encouraging  de 
ceit,  fraud,  violence,  theft."  "But  Sked,  you  have  had 
many  a  warm  dinner  at  Richard  Dundren's  when  other 
people  were  quick  to  shut  their  doors  in  your  face. 
You  have  had  many  a  good  night's  rest  under  his  com 
fortable  roof,  when  otherwise  you  would  have  sought 
shelter  in  a  shed  or  slept  in  the  open  air.  They  have 
entertained  you  hospitably  there,  off  and  on,  for  more 
than  twenty  years,  and  now  you  would  sell  them  out 
and  turn  them  out,  root  and  branch.  Is  not  this 
rather  hard,  good  sir?  Come,  now,  speak  up  like  an 
honest  man  and  tell  me  if  it  is  not  a  little  hard?"  The 
voice  now  changed  to  angry  earnestness.  "I  tell  you 
no,  you  simple-hearted  fool !  In  demanding  my  own  I 
but  do  my  duty;  I  follow  in  this  the  strict  letter  of 
the  law.  I  refuse  to  encourage  the  extravagance  of 
one  at  the  expense  of  another.  I  teach  men  a  whole 
some  lesson  to  live  within  their  means ;  I  teach  them 
not  to  pretend  to  be  what  they  are  not.  You  speak 
of  dinners  and  lodgings ;  they  have  not  been  so  many 
that  you  need  to  have  mentioned  them.  If  given  free 
ly,  as  you  say  they  were,  it  would  have  been  an  insult 
to  hospitality  to  offer  compensation.  If  intended  as  a 
bribe  to  draw  me  on,  and  wheedle  me  out  of  money, 
the  act  was  an  unworthy  one  for  which  they  are  en 
titled  to  no  favor.  Come,  now,  Peter,  you  haven't  the 


MR.  TRAVIS  39 

impudence  to  claim  that  men  should  be  influenced  by 
bribes  ?  For  if  you  have,  I  shall  make  bold  to  say  you 
are  a  scoundrel,  sir." 

Sked  had  by  this  time  reached  the  crest  of  a  hill, 
and  from  it  looked  down  upon  the  twinkling  street 
lamps  of  a  city.  It  was  not  yet  light  enough  to  see 
what  else  lay  before  him,  but  as  he  descended  the  easy 
slope  toward  the  valley,  the  eastern  horizon  became 
brighter,  the  darkness  began  to  fade  away,  and  objects 
near  to  him  grew  more  and  more  distinct.  He  dis 
cerned  now,  off  to  his  left,  a  level  plain,  like  a  great 
sheet  of  lead ;  while  directly  in  front  and  to  the  right 
of  him  he  sa\v  the  roofs,  gables  and  chimneys  of  the 
city,  with  here  and  there  columns  of  coal  smoke  ris 
ing,  then  toppling  and  hanging  indecisively  in  the  still 
air.  Pretty  soon  he  caught  sight  of  the  dark  waters 
of  a  currentless  river  which  bent  in  and  out  around 
the.  base  of  the  elevated  ground  beyond  it,  on  which 
the  greater  portion  of  the  city  lay;  and  then,  near  the 
junction  of  this  sluggish  stream  with  the  leaden  lake, 
he  beheld  a  forest  of  masts,  and  plying  among  the  ves 
sels  noisy  little  steam  tugs  with  chimney  tops  in  a 
luminous  glow,  and  behind  them  long  banners  of  black 
smoke  which  broadened  and  finally  thinned  out  until 
it  became,  apparently,  murky  vapor,  and  made  all  man 
ner  of  fantastic  figures  on  the  dull  background  of  the 
sky.  *• 


IV 


EBENEZER  GUM 

DUNDREN  and  his  wife  had  many  friends  in 
Cranberry  County,  and  yet  it  is  perhaps  true 
that  the  average  citizen  is  not,  as  a  rule,  greatly 
depressed  by  the  misfortunes  of  those  who  have 
been,  in  point  of  wealth  and  social  standing,  far 
above  him.  "Here,"  he  is  inclined  to  say,  "I  have  been 
looking  upon  this  man  and  touching  my  hat  to  him  be 
cause  I  thought  him  wealthier  than  myself,  but  when 
the  truth  is  known,  I  find  him  poorer."  Those  whose 
donations  for  charitable  purposes  have  been  surpassed 
by  the  gifts  of  a  more  generous  hand,  are  apt  to  con 
clude  :  "Ah !  well,  it  is  easy  enough  to  be  liberal  in  the 
disbursement  of  other  people's  money."  Those  who 
control  fewer  acres  and  ride  in  poorer  carriages,  are 
not  unlikely  to  remark  :  "Thank  heaven,  what  we  own 
we  own."  Those  who.  on  the  score  of  economy,  wear 
cheaper  clothing,  will  probably  observe  in  confidence 
to  their  next  door  neighbor.  "The  clothes  we  wear 
are  paid  for."  And  so,  for  a  multitude  of  reasons,  peo 
ple  who  were  most  charming  in  their  treatment  of  us 
when  we  stood  in  the  sunshine  of  prosperity,  drop  off 
one  by  one,  until  we  are  surprised  to  find  ourselves 
nearly,  if  not  quite,  alone  with  our  misfortunes.  This 
is  perhaps  well,  for  men  in  trouble  find  little,  if  any, 
solace  in  companionship.  That  practical  sympathy 
which  stands  ready  to  make  tangible  sacrifices  for  our 
relief  is  so  rare  that  sensible  men  seldom  look  for  it, 
and  certainly  never  rely  upon  it. 

(40) 


EBENEZEE  GUM  41 

Mr.  Travis  had  hitherto  been  so  frequent  a  visitor 
at  Cherry  Farm  that  his  going  to  and  from  the  place  at 
tracted  little  or  no  attention,  but  just  now  he  purposely 
remained  away.  If  he  were  to  hasten  to  Dundren  with 
his  sympathy  and  offers  of  professional  assistance,  that 
gentleman  might,  under  the  circumstances,  suspect  the 
honesty  of  his  motives.  There  was,  he  thought,  a 
more  effective  way  of  accomplishing  the  end  he  had  in 
view,  and  to  this  he  had  immediate  recourse.  In  the 
presence  of  Dundren's  personal  friends  he  denounced 
the  Sked  claim  as  fraudulent,  and  affirmed  that  the 
case  would  be  promptly  dismissed  by  the  court  with 
out  the  formality  of  a  trial." 

"You  must  be  mistaken,  Mr.  Travis,"  they  would 
say,  "the  sheriff— 

"Not  at  all;  I  know  Sked,  the  plaintiff;  he  is  a 
worthless  tramp  who  never  had  money  enough  to  buy 
a  decent  and  comfortable  suit  of  clothes.  The  idea 
that  anybody  owes  him  eighty  thousand  dollars  is 
simply  preposterous." 

"But  Mr.  Travis,  Dundren  admits  the  claim,  and 
will  make  no  defense  against  it." 

"You  must  be  wrong.  As  I  have  already  said,  I 
know  old  Peter  Sked,  and  am  quite  sure  he  never 
possessed  a  dollar  in  his  life.  I  think  the  man  from 
whom  you  heard  the  story  is  mistaken ;  in  fact,  I 
know  he  must  be  !" 

"But  Dundren  is  no  longer  a  candidate.  He 
would  not  have  withdrawn  at  this  late  day  if  there 
were  not  some  urgent  reason  for  it." 

"Well,  well,  he  may  have  done  that;  I  am  quite 
sure,  however,  he  had  some  reason  for  withdrawing 
other  than  the  one  suggested." 


42  UNCLE  PETER  SKED 

By  thus  defending  Dundren  against  the  doubts 
and  fears  of  that  gentleman's  best  friends,  Mr.  Travis 
raised  himself  considerably  in  their  esteem,  and  se 
cured  the  support  of  many  men  who  would,  in  the 
absence  of  these  professions  of  friendliness,  have  rid 
den  the  county  day  and  night  to  accomplish  his  defeat. 

The  Congressional  Convention  was  to  be  held  on 
the  25th  of  June,  and  as  it  was  now  the  middle  of 
that  month,  Mr.  Travis'  time  was  fully  occupied. 
There  were  many  whom  he  esteemed  friends  to  be 
stimulated  into  activity,  and  many  more  whom  he  re 
garded  as  enemies  to  be  quieted.  The  former  were 
at  best  but  lukewarm,  the  latter  generally  bitter,  and 
not  a  few  of  them  vindictive.  To  the  one  class  he 
made  personal  appeals  for  help;  and  upon  the  other 
brought  to  bear  such  influences  as  he  deemed  most 
effective.  But  by  far  the  greater  number  of  those  who 
thronged  his  office  as  the  day  for  choosing  the  nomi 
nating  delegates  approached,  entertained  no  feeling 
whatever  either  for  or  against  the  candidate.  They 
were  ward  or  township  politicians  of  unsavory  repu 
tation,  and  little  influence,  known  to  be  purchasable, 
who  on  one  pretext  or  another  extorted  money  from 
him  which  never  went  beyond  their  pockets  until  ex 
pended  for  their  own  personal  benefit. 

It  being  now  generally  understood  that  there 
would  be  no  other  candidate  in  Cranberry,  Mr.  Travis, 
on  the  day  of  the  primaries,  succeeded  in  securing  a 
solid  delegation  from  his  own  county  to  the  district 
convention,  and  as  it  was,  by  the  rule  of  alternation 
hitherto  mentioned,  the  turn  of  this  county  to  have  the 
candidate,  he  was  in  due  time  nominated  for  Congress, 
bv  acclamation. 


EBENEZEK  GUM  43 

The  honorable  Alexander  Hamilton  Popper,  the 
Republican  candidate  and  Mr.  Travis'  opponent  in  this 
contest,  was  a  gentleman  by  no  means  deficient  in 
political  cunning,  nor  in  ability  to  make  the  race  an 
interesting  one.  Although  not  a  member  of  any 
church  organization,  he  nevertheless  prided  himself  on 
his  morality  and  was  somewhat  demonstrative  in  his 
support  of  religious  enterprises.  From  the  elevation 
on  which  he  stood  it  was  an  easy  matter  to  make  ex 
cursions  to  the  right  or  left  in  search  of  helpers,  and 
to  levy  contributions  from  the  powers  of  light  and 
darkness.  Still  he  was  strictly  moral  and  naturally 
religious,  and  if  he  ever  coquetted  with  Satan  it  was 
to  decejve  the  rascal  and  make  good  use  of  him.  It 
was  the  prevailing  tendency  of  Mr.  Popper's  thought 
in  the  direction  of  noble  objects  which  led  him  to 
write  to  Deacon  Ebenezer  Gum  that  he  would  be 
pleased  to  meet  him  at  as  early  a  day  as  possible  with 
a  view  to  a  consultation  on  important  business  con 
nected  with  the  present  alarming  condition  of  the 
country. 

Gum  was  a  well  preserved  man  of  fifty-five,  whose 
long,  narrow,  smoothly-shaven  face,  broad  brimmed, 
low  crowned  hat,  and  clothing  of  sober  color  and  anti 
quated  cut,  betokened  that  his  affections  had  been 
weaned  from  the  follies  in  which  a  wicked  and  adul 
terous  generation  takes  delight,  and  concentrated  on  a 
period  of  the  near  future  when,  through  his  own  ef 
forts  mainly,  mankind  would  be  purged  of  all  social 
and  political  uncleanness,  and  made  to  stand  up  an 
everlasting  monument  of  his  superior  goodness. 

Time  had  not  dealt  as  tenderly  with  the  hairs  of 
Ebenezer's  wig  as  a  humane  and  gentle  heart  might 
wish;  from  a  lovely  brown  they  had  been  converted. 


44  UNCLE  PETER  SKED 

by  its  inexorable  hand,  to  a  faded  and  dirty  yellow. 
And  there  were  spaces  also  where  the  wig  was  bald, 
the  hairs  of  it  possibly  having  been  shaken  out  by  the 
tremendous  throbbings  of  the  active  mental  engine 
underneath. 

In  early  life  the  Deacon  had  been  a  shoemaker, 
and  as  was  natural  for  one  in  the  leather  line,  had 
given  much  attention  to  the  soles  of  men,  and  pegged 
and  mended  them  until  he  become  very  proficient  in  the 
art.  But  at  last  finding  this  pursuit  restrictive,  monot 
onous  and  unsuited  to  one  of  high  aspirations,  he  di 
verted  his  thoughts  from  soles  to  souls,  studied  divinity 
at  odd  hours  of  the  day  and  night,  and  finally  leaving 
his  bench,  became  the  spiritual  adviser  of  a  congrega 
tion  which  assembled  for  worship  at  Wild  Cat  meet 
ing-house.  The  Sunday  collections  at  this  outpost  of 
duty,  however,  were  not  of  such  magnitude  as  fully 
to  meet  his  generous  expectations,  and  consequently 
his  religious  fervor  abated  gradually  until  it  ceased 
altogether,  when,  abandoning  his  charge,  he  entered 
the  political  arena  and  became  the  recognized  and 
trusted  leader  of  the  Prohibitionists  of  his  immediate 
locality. 

Although  the  revenue  derived  from  this  last  posi 
tion  was  by  no  means  munificent,  he  nevertheless  man 
aged  to  subsist  on  it  quite  comfortably,  and  at  the  same 
time  make  himself  exceedingly  useful  to  the  country 
by  elevating  the  popular  conscience  to  a  higher  polit 
ical  standard.  His  devotion  to  the  principles  of  tem 
perance  and  reform,  however,  did  not  deter  him  from 
indicating  a  neighborly  willingness  to  make  himself 
useful  to  Mr.  Travis  in  the  convention  which  had  just 
concluded  its  labors ;  but  as  that  gentleman  had  ascer 
tained  there  would  be  no  opposition  to  his  nomination, 


EBENEZER  GUM  45 

he  did  not  deem  it  advisable  to  go  to  the  expense  of 
carrying  with  him  to  that  body  a  living  and  unim 
peachable  witness  to  his  high  character  and  good  hab 
its.  If,  however,  Mr.  Travis  had  employed  Ebenezer 
to  testify  to  his  personal  worth,  he  would  have  dis 
charged  the  duty  assigned  him,  with  scrupulous  fideli 
ty,  and  immediately  thereafter  felt  at  liberty  to  ren 
der  a  like  service  to  any  one  or  all  of  the  many  aspir 
ants  of  the  opposite  party. 

It  may  not  be  generally  known  how  a  gentleman 
of  Brother  Gum's  standing  could  be  made  useful  in  an 
assembly  composed  of  men  who  did  not  profess  to  be 
lieve  in  his  peculiar  political  tenets ;  but  in  every  party 
there  are  elements  more  or  less  inharmonious  to  be 
reconciled.  There  are,  for  instance,  the  radical  man 
and  the  conservative ;  the  bold  and  the  cautious.  The 
man  whose  interest,  and  possibly  habits,  make  him  the 
advocate  of  free  rum,  and  the  man  who  is  opposed  to 
the  unlicensed,  or  even  the  licensed  traffic  in  intoxicat 
ing  liquors.  Men  holding  every  shade  and  variety  of 
views  respecting  the  revenue  laws ;  men  who  pride 
themselves  on  their  standing  in  the  church ;  men  who 
have  no  religious  convictions  whatever.  Men  who  be 
lieve  secret  societies  exert  a  wholesome  influence  in 
the  community,  and  those  who  regard  them  as  danger 
ous  to  the  well  being  of  the  state.  Men  hostile  to  all 
members  of  the  learned  professions,  and  those  who 
have  no  confidence  in  farmers  and  workingmen  as  law 
makers.  Men  who  favor  corporations,  and  those  who 
would  restrict  them,  or  abolish  them  altogether. 

To  reconcile  a  body  in  which  so  many  diverse 
creeds,  opinions  and  temperaments  are  represented, 
and  lead  it  up  to  a  common  purpose  requires  the  dis 
creet  use  of  many,  apparently,  antagonistic  influences ; 


46  UNCLE  PETEK  SKED 

and  now  that  the  popular  mind  had  become  in  some  de 
gree  sensitive  on  the  temperance  question,  a  gentle 
man  of  Brother  Gum's  antecedents,  so  far  as  the  gen 
eral  public  knew  of  them,  was  especially  valuable,  and 
hence  it  was  that  almost  every  convention  and  alto 
gether  every  election  was  made  to  contribute  to  his 
income. 

Brother  Ebenezer  had  had  too  much  attention 
from  candidates  to  be  at  all  inflated  by  the  letter  re 
ceived  from  the  Honorable  Air.  Popper,  but  he  never 
failed  to  respond  promptly  when  called  to  the  perform 
ance  of  a  political  duty,  and  therefore  saddled  his 
mouse-colored  mare,  rode  leisurely  northward  from 
Cranberry  town  for  a  few  miles  until  he  came  to  a 
cross-road,  then  turned  westward  and  proceeded  to 
another  intersection  of  the  highways,  where,  turning 
directly  to  the  south,  he  increased  the  speed  of  the 
mare  and  continued  until  the  dusk  of  evening,  when, 
after  a  brisk  ride  of  thirty  miles,  he  drew  up  in  front 
of  a  comfortable  dwelling  in  a  neighboring  county 
seat.  Hitching  his  animal  to  a  post  which  stood  con 
veniently  near  the  gateway,  the  Deacon  crossed  the 
space  intervening  between  the  road  and  the  residence, 
and  rang  the  door-bell.  A  moment  thereafter  Mr. 
Popper  appeared,  and  recognizing  his  visitor,  ex 
claimed  : 

"It  is  Mr.  Gum.  My  good  sir.  I  was  just  thinking 
of  you  and  am  rejoiced  to  meet  you.  Come  in." 

After  the  visitor's  appetite  had  been  so  fully  satis 
fied  that  he  could  not  be  induced  to  indulge  it  -further, 
the  interview  on  the  state  of  the  country  began. 

"You  are  aware,  Mr.  Gum,"  said  Popper,  deliber 
ately,  and  with  an  air  oi  exceeding  soberness,  "that 
my  sympathies  have  always  been  with  the  cause  of 


EBENEZEK  GUM  47 

temperance;  that  I  am  practically  a  teetotaler.  It 
would  not,  however,  be  politic  for  me  to  express  my 
views  on  this  subject  too  strongly  in  my  public  utter 
ances.  I  have,  therefore,  sought  this  opportunity  to 
assure  you,  the  recognized  leader  of  the  Prohibition 
ists  of  Cranberry  County,  that  if  elected  I  shall  do  my 
utmost,  sir —  Here  Mr.  Popper  paused  for  a  mo 
ment  to  give  Brother  Ebenezer  time  to  estimate  the 
immensity  of  the  service  modestly  alluded  to  by  the 
feeble  word,  utmost  —  "my  utmost,  sir,  to  advance  the 
cause  you  have  at  heart." 

Ebenezer  cast  his  eyes  devoutly  to  the  ceiling  be 
fore  giving  expression  orally  to  the  intense  joy  which 
filled  his  heart  at  this  blessed  assurance,  and  then  said : 

"To  be  frank  and  honest  with  you,  my  honored 
sir,  I  must  confess  that  I  have  had  my  doubts  as  to  the 
precise  tendency  of  your  influence  —  you  must  pardon 
me,  my  friend  —  perhaps  my  own  great  anxiety  with 
respect  to  the  subject  led  me  to  fear,  possibly,  your 
influence  might  not  be  exerted  on  the  side  of  temper 
ance  and  reform ;  but  now  my  doubts  are  dispelled, 
and  I  shall  leave  you  with  a  lighter  heart." 

"Do  you  think  you  could  aid  me  in  this  important 
contest,  Mr.  Gum  ?"  Popper  inquired  eagerly. 

"I  should  be  glad  to  do  it,  sir.  The  assurance 
you  have  given  makes  me  feel  as  if  I  ought  to  do  it, 
Mr.  Popper,  and  yet  I  must  not  be  unfaithful  to  my 
party,  sir.  No,  no,  Mr.  Popper,  I  must  be  loyal  to  it. 
But  I  am  quite  sure  you  have  the  opportunity  to  do  the 
cause  a  power  of  good." 

"But,  my  dear  Gum,  your  party  cannot  elect  a 
man  to  the  place,  would  it  not  be  wisdom,  therefore, 
to  concentrate  your  votes  on  me  —  would  it  not  be  far 


48  UNCLE  PETER  SKED 

better,  indeed,  than  to  fritter  them  away  on  one  who 
stands  no  possible  chance  of  success  ?" 

"Well,  well,  that  is  a  question  —  that  is  a  question, 
Mr.  Popper,  for  one's  conscience  and  judgment  to  de 
termine,"  replied  Gum,  meditatively.  "I  do  not  know 
-  I  have  sometimes  thought  it  would  —  and  —  and  at 
other  times  that  it  would  not ;  really  the  question  puz 
zles  me." 

"How  strong  is  your  party  in  Cranberry,  Mr. 
Gum?''  said  Popper,  softly,  as  if  while  putting  the 
question  he  was  ransacking  his  own  mind  for  some 
expeditious  method  of  ridding  the  world  of  tippling 
houses,  and  thus  bringing  about  a  social  millennium. 
"How  many  votes  can  it  poll  ?" 

"The  vote  varies  considerably,"  replied  Gum  slow 
ly,  as  if  making  a  careful  estimate ;  ''when  no  great 
effort  is  made  to  bring  it  out,  the  vote  is  small,  but 
when  the  party  is  thoroughly  aroused  the  votes  will 
number  three  hundred.  I  think  this  year  the  full 
strength  of  the  party  will  be  polled.  I  should  say 
three  hundred,  sir,  at  least." 

"How  many  of  them,"  said  Popper  still  endeavor 
ing  to  solve  the  great  moral  problem  uppermost  in  his 
mind,  and  regarding  his  question  as  immaterial  to  the 
main  issue,  "how  many  of  these  votes  could  you  throw 
for  me  if  you  saw  it  was  your  duty  as  a  temperance 
man  to  do  so  —  if  you  really  felt  you  would  be  giving 
your  principles  practical  assistance,  sir?  How  many, 
Mr.  Gum?" 

"I  should  say,  at  a  rough  estimate,  two  hundred 
and  seventy-five  —  no,  I  fear  this  would  be  putting  it 
too  high.  Two  hundred  and  fifty  would  be  nearer  the 
figure.  Mr.  Popper,  providing  I  was  authorized  to  as 
sure  them  on  my  honor  that  they  might  rely  on  you. 


EBENEZER  GUM  49 

I  would  not  even  entertain  the  proposition  to  do  it 
otherwise.  A  man's  honor  is  a  sacred  thing,  Mr.  Pop 
per,  and  must  not  be  lightly  pledged;  still  I  have 
little  heart  for  the  task,  for  it  would  require  a  heap 
of  labor." 

"But  what  better  thing  could  you  do  ?  You  know 
there's  no  hope  for  any  candidate  you  might  put  in  the 
field.  You  know  exactly  where  I  stand.  Now  as  an 
honest  man,  desirous  of  doing  what  you  can  for  re 
form,  and  the  promotion  of  temperance,  what  better 
can  you  do  ?" 

"Your  argument  seems  sound  and  you  put  it  forc 
ibly,  Mr.  Popper,  very  forcibly,  I  must  confess,"  said 
Gum  as  if  almost  convinced  that  duty  required  him  to 
yield;  "but  then,  my  friend,  the  labor  of  seeing  all 
these  voters  privately,  and  arguing  the  question  with 
them,  and  putting  them  in  the  field  to  work  is 
no  light  task,  and  would  be  attended  with  more  or  less 
expense.  You  are  aware,  sir,  that  I  am  a  poor  man 
and  have  little  time  and  less  money  to  spare  in  an 
enterprise  that  will  profit  me  nothing." 

"But  is  it  not  a  religious  duty,  Mr.  Gum,  is  it  not 
a  duty  binding  on  your  conscience?" 

"It  looks  like  it;  I  fear  I  must  say  it  is.  Yes, 
it  is  impossible  to  escape  the  force  of  your  logic,  Mr. 
Popper,  and  whatever  it  may  be  possible  for  a  man 
of  my  means  and  opportunities  to  accomplish,  shall  be 
done.  I  promise  you  that,  but  I  shall  not  be  able  to 
devote  my  whole  time  to  the  work;  and  yet  I  would 
be  glad  to  do  so,  for  when  I  take  hold  of  a  thing  I  like 
to  do  it  with  all  my  might ;  still  you  may  rely  on  me 
to  do  what  I  can  —  what  a  man  who  depends  for  a 
livelihood  on  his  daily  labor,  can  reasonably  do." 


50  UNCLE  PETER  SKED 

"But  I  should  like  you  to  see  all  the  members 
of  your  party,"  said  Popper  eagerly ;  ''to  impress  upon 
them  the  necessity  of  working  and  voting  for  me." 

"That  would  be  impossible  to  one  situated  as  I 
am,"  replied  Gum,  decisively ;  "utterly  out  of  the  ques 
tion.  My  family  would  starve  while  I  was  doing  it, 
and  I  should  be  compelled  to  beg  my  way  from  house 
to  house." 

"But  how  much  would  it  cost  to  do  the  work  in 
this  thorough  way,  Mr.  Gum  —  how  much?" 

"It  never  occurred  to  me  to  make  the  estimate, 
Mr.  Popper.  It  is  too  far  beyond  my  own  means  to 
render  it  worth  my  while  to  count  up  the  exact  cost." 

"Could  it  be  done  for  a  hundred  dollars?" 

"Not  for  three  times  that  sum,  sir;  I  think  it  safe 
to  say  not  for  four  times  that  amount,  sir.  You  travel 
ten  miles  to  see  a  man,  and  find  he  is  not  at  home ;  you 
call  again,  he  may  be  there  and  may  not,  but  if  he  is 
you  talk  the  matter  over  for  an  hour,  possibly  for  a 
whole  afternoon,  for  such  things  must  be  discreetly 
done,  not  hastily.  There  are  three  hundred  of  these 
men;  you  can  estimate  yourself  the  time  required  to 
see  them  all,  and  how  much  the  expense  of  such  a 
work  is  likely  to  foot  up.  I  should  say  five  hundred 
dollars  would  not  pay  the  cost." 

"That's  a  large  sum,"  said  Popper  firmly. 

"Too  large,  too  large  for  one  man  to  lose  or  an 
other  to  pay,"  replied  Gum  heartily.  "It  was  for  this 
reason  I  regarded  your  suggestion  as  impracticable." 

"But,  don't  you  think,  Mr.  Gum,  if  I  were  to  give 
you  three  hundred  dollars  you  could  undertake  the 
work  and  do  it  thoroughly  ?" 

"I  should  say  it  would  take  five  at  the  very  least; 
still  I  would  willingly  pinch  myself  and  submit  to 


EBENEZEK  GUM  51 

many  sacrifices  in  order  to  discharge  a  duty.  If  you 
will  make  it  four  hundred  I  will  undertake  the  work. 
I  fear  five  will  not  cover  the  outlay  required ;  still  I 
am  not  the  man  to  stand  on  a  few  dollars  when  a  mat 
ter  of  principle  is  at  stake.  I'll  undertake  it  for  four." 

The  candidate  quit  his  seat  and  walked  the  floor 
meditatively  for  five  minutes,  then  turning  to  Eben- 
ezer  thanked  him  for  the  generous  offer  and  paid  over 
the  money.  He  did  not  desire  to  part  with  so  much, 
but  he  did  'want  to  be  elected,  and  after  he  had  con 
cluded  to  strike  a  bargain  he  was  wise  enough  to  know 
it  was  best  to  do  it  cheerfully,  as  if  he  were  receiving 
instead  of  conferring  a  favor.  An  intimation  that  the 
sum  asked  was  exorbitant  might  have  irritated  his  vis 
itor  and  rendered  him  an  indifferent  worker,  if  not  a 
secret  enemy. 

In  the  gray  of  the  next  morning  Brother  Ebenezer 
ate  his  breakfast  at  Mr.  Popper's  hospitable  board,  and 
charged  by  the  fair  Mrs.  Popper  with  good  wishes  and 
pleasant  messages  for  Mrs.  Gum,  mounted  his  plump 
mouse-colored  mare  and  started  northward  just  four 
hundred  dollars  richer  than  he  was  the  day  before.  It 
was  not  far  beyond  the  middle  of  the  afternoon  when, 
having  passed  beyond  the  town  and  then  turning  east 
ward  and  then  southward  he  trotted  into  Cranberry 
from  the  north,  without  any  of  his  fellow  townsmen 
having  even  the  remotest  suspicion  that  he  had  been 
visiting  Mr.  Travis'  competitor  for  congressional 
honors. 

After  a  brief  interview  with  Mr.  Travis  a  few  days 
later,  in  which  the  alarming  condition  of  the  country 
was  discussed  with  great  plainness,  and  in  utter  for- 
getfulness  of  the  eternal  principles  to  which  Brother 
Ebenezer  professed  allegiance,  the  latter  gentleman 


52  UNCLE  PETEK  SKED 

began  to  prepare  for  inexpensive  rides  into  the  coun 
try.  To  do  this  it  was  only  necessary  to  make  out  a 
list  of  personal  acquaintances  at  whose  houses  he  might 
stop  and  be  quite  certain  to  secure  good  dinners  and 
comfortable  lodgings  without  cost.  It  is  not  by  any 
means  an  undesirable  thing  to  be  the  recognized  leader 
of  a  political  party,  even  if  it  be  a  small  one,  for  such 
a  man  not  only  has  opportunities  to  elevate  the  stand 
ard  of  public  morals,  but  to  turn  an  honest  penny  from 
the  candidate's  pocket  to  his  own. 


GINGER 

WHILE  the  two  leading  political  parties  were  ad 
justing  their  lines  for  the  approaching  conflict, 
Mr.  Dundren  was  actively  endeavoring  to  find 
a  purchaser  for  his  land  and  live  stock ;  but  money  was 
by  no  means  abundant,  and  those  who  had  the  little 
there  was,  knew  good  mortgage  notes  bearing  the  cur 
rent  rate  of  interest  would  in  the  end  prove  more  profit 
able  than  the  most  productive  farm ;  and  so  no  atten 
tion  was  given  to  his  proposition  to  sell  at  much  less 
than  he  considered-  the  property  worth. 

On  the  first  day  of  the  August  term  the  attorney 
to  whom  Mr.  Travis  had  entrusted  the  Sked  claim, 
asked  permission  of  the  court  to  have  judgment  entered 
for  the  amount.  The  case  was  thereupon  called,  and 
as  no  one  appeared  to  make  objection,  the  clerk  was 
directed  to  prepare  the  entry  usual  in  similar  cases. 
The  action  of  the  court  made  Sked's  claim  a  first  lien 
on  the  real  estate,  but  in  obedience  to  the  order  of  the 
plaintiff's  attorney,  the  sheriff  rode  out  to  Cherry  farm 
in  the  evening,  and  levied  on  the  personal  property. 
He  had.  under  the  law,  sixty  days  in  which  to  make 
return  of  his  writ  of  execution,  and- having  now  dis 
charged  his  duty  to  the  creditor  fully,  he  was  inclined 
to  be  as  lenient  as  possible  to  the  debtor.  But  Mr. 
Dundren  had  ceased  to  regard  time  as  important  to 
him.  He  had  diligently  sought  a  purchaser,  and  failed 
to  find  one,  and  had  no  reason  to  suppose  delay  would 

(53) 


54  UNCLE  PETER  SKED 

result  otherwise  than  to  increase  the  claim  against  him 
by  additional  interest  and  costs.  He,  therefore,  re 
quested  the  sheriff  to  have  appraisers  selected  and  the 
property  brought  to  sale  as  soon  as  possible. 

The  wishes  of  the  debtor  in  these  particulars  were 
complied  with.  The  appraisers  estimated  the  land  at 
one  hundred  thousand  dollars,  and  the  personal  prop 
erty,  embracing  live  stock  and  farming  utensils  at  forty 
thousand ;  two-thirds  of  the  former  sum  would  be 
sixty-six  thousand  six  hundred  and  sixty-six  dollars ; 
if  the  personalty  sold  proportionately  well,  the  pro 
ceeds  of  both  would  pay  the  debt,  and  leave  Dundren 
ten  thousand  dollars  with  which  to  begin  life  anew. 
The  occupants  of  Cherry  farm  were  therefore,  greatly 
encouraged,  and  Mr.  Dundren,  himself,  felt  almost 
happy  over  the  prospect  of  getting  rid  of  an  oppressive 
burden,  with  enough  left  to  keep  him  out  of  the  poor- 
house. 

The  latter  part  of  August  came,  and  with  it  the 
day  appointed  for  the  sale.  The  people  who  attended 
it  were  mostly  farmers,  and  there  was  a  great  collec 
tion  of  buggies  and  other  vehicles  in  the  road  near 
Dundren's  house.  The  live  stock  and  farm  implements 
were  to  be  sold  unconditionally,  but  the  land  must 
bring  two-thirds  of  its  appraised  value,  if  it  sold  at  all. 
As  the  morning  wore  on  the  sheriff  ascended  a  horse 
block,  so  that  every  body  could  see  him,  and  announced 
that  the  hour  had  come  when  the  sale  was  advertised 
to  begin.  After  reading  the  notice  required  by  law  on 
such  occasions,  he  said  he  would  offer  the  land  first 
because  the  man  who  had  the  good  luck  to  get  it  might 
want  the  live  stock  and  farm  implements,  and  for  the 
further  reason  that  if  the  land  brought  what  it  was 


GINGER  55 

worth  it  would  not  be  necessary  to  put  anything  else 
to  sale. 

Old  Peter  Sked  was  sitting  on  a  bench  some  little 
distance  from  the  sheriff.  He  was  angry.  The  land 
had,  in  his  opinion,  been  appraised  at  more  than  its 
actual  value.  The  scoundrelly  appraisers  had  been 
bribed ;  they  were  in  league  with  Dundren.  This  was 
evident  enough.  He  might  pay  sixty-six  thousand  for 
the  land,  personal  property  and  all,  but  to  be  required 
to  give  that  much  for  the  land  alone,  and  allow  Dun 
dren  to  get  away  with  most  of  the  live  stock  and  farm 
ing  utensils  was  such  a  high  handed  outrage  on  an 
honest  money-lender  as  none  but  a  parcel  of  dishonest 
farmers  would  dare  to  perpetrate.  Dod-blast  it!  he 
would  not  be  extorted  from.  If  somebody  else  did  not 
bid  enough  to  pay  his  claim  he  would  allow  the  prop 
erty  to  be  advertised  and  offered  again.  In  this  way 
Sked  went  on  talking  to  Peter,  his  tender  hearted  part 
ner,  who,  after  being  soundly  rated  for  getting  into  the 
difficulty,  plucked  up  the  courage  to  suggest  that  the 
farm  alone  would  be  cheap  at  eighty-five  thousand, 
but  Sked  retorted,  angrily  : 

"Tut,  tut,  man  you're  a  fool.  I  can  make  more 
off  half  the  money." 

"But,  Sked,"  said  Peter  coaxingly,  "this  would  be 
an  absolutely  safe  investment;  the  land  would  neither 
burn  nor  run  away." 

"But  the  buildings  might  burn.  I  say,  Peter, 
you're  a  fool  to  think  of  giving  eighty-five  thousand. 
Why,  man,  does  that  seem  a  trifling  sum  to  you?  A 
sum  to  be  thrown  away?  Eh?  In  a  little  over  seven 
years  one  hundred  and  seventy  thousand,  fourteen, 
three  hundred  and  forty  thousand,  twenty-one  years 
three  months  and  twenty-eight  days,  six  hundred  and 


56  UNCLE  PETEK  SKED 

eighty  thousand,  in  less  than  thirty-five  years  two  mil 
lion  seven  hundred  and  twenty  thousand ;  in  a  little 
over  forty-two  years,  five  million,  four  hundred  and 
forty  thousand ;  in  less  than  fifty  years  ten  million 
eight  hundred  and  eighty  thousand  dollars.  Why, 
dod-blast  it,  Peter,  you're  crazy  —  a  raving  lunatic ; 
you  might  till  this  farm  a  thousand  years  and  not 
make  half  that  amount.  Ten  per  cent,  beats  the  world, 
Peter!  No,  no;  I'll  not  buy."  And  as  nobody  else 
did,  the  sheriff,  marking  on  his  writ,  "No  bidders  for 
the  land,"  turned  his  attention  to  the  personal  property, 
and  proceeded  to  offer  the  horses,  cattle  and  sheep. 

Dundren  stood  well  with  the  people  of  Cranberry 
County,  and  to-day  he  was  surrounded  by  sturdy  farm 
ers  who  thought  if  a  man  ever  needed  friends  it  was 
when  the  roof  which  sheltered  his  family  was  being 
exposed  to  sale  by  the  sheriff.  They  were  not  able  to 
make  so  large  a  purchase,  but  had  a  stranger  bought 
the  farm,  they  would  have  bid  and  bid  lively  on  the 
personal  property  with  a  view  to  putting  it  on  him  at 
the  highest  possible  price.  As  the  land  did  not  sell, 
however,  and  as  it  would  be  comparatively  valueless  to 
Dundren  without  the  live  stock  and  farm  implements, 
there  were  some  whispered  consultations,  and  subse 
quently  much  pleasant  talk  and  considerable  chaffing 
of  the  sheriff  by  those  who  knew  he  would  take  it 
kindly ;  but  there  were  no  bidders  and  no  sales.  Finally 
the  officer  of  the  law,  assuming  an  air  of  indignation, 
which  all  recognized  as  transparent  hypocrisy,  said  the 
men  before  him  w^ere  a  dull  and  empty  lot  of  fellows, 
on  whom  he  had  wasted  too  much  of  his  valuable 
time ;  he  should  therefore,  announce  the  sale  closed  and 
bid  them  all  get  off  the  premises  forthwith. 

As  Sked  walked  away  in  an  angry  mood,  Peter 


GINGER  57 

sought  to  console  him  somewhat  with  the  suggestion 
that  there  was  property  enough  to  pay  the  debt  and 
meantime  it  was  drawing  a  fair  rate  of  interest.  But 
Sked  was  so  dissatisfied  over  the  poor  results  of  the 
day  that  he  traveled  five  miles  without  stopping,  then 
begged  a  cold  lunch  and  went  on  his  way.  It  was  fully 
ten  o'clock  when  he  sought  lodging  in  a  pile  of  straw, 
which,  after  passing  through  the  threshing  machine, 
had  been  left  in  a  field  adjacent  to  the  highway.  It 
was  a  pleasant  night  and  the  bed  he  found  was  soft 
and  dry,  but  what  commended  it  most  strongly  to  Sked 
was  the  fact  that  it  would  cost  him  nothing.  Peter 
had  frequently  warned  his  co-partner  that  if  he  con 
tinued  to  spend  the  nights  in  barns,  stables  and  open 
fields,  he  might  take  such  a  cold  as  \vould  insure  him 
a  permanent  resting  place  under  the  sod,  and  now  sug 
gested  the  same  thought  again :  but  Sked  sneered  at 
Peter's  admonitions. 

"Why,  sir,"  he  said,  "don't  you  know  warm,  badly 
ventilated  rooms  cause  the  death  of  millions,  eh  ?  The 
air  becomes  poisonous,  the  system  becoming  over 
heated  grows  soft  and  liable  to  take  on  disease.  Why, 
you  self  indulgent  fool !  Look  at  the  cattle  and  horses, 
the  wild  beasts ;  they  are  flesh  and  blood  like  ourselves, 
eh  ?  Do  they  get  sick  and  send  for  the  doctors  to  make 
them  sicker?  Eh?  Now  do  they?  Not  often.  Peter, 
not  often.  They  have  sense  enough  to  live  in  the  open 
air,  and  not  shut  themselves  up  in  heated  and  unwhole 
some  rooms." 

"But,  Sked,"  said  Peter,  "you  have  not,  I  hope, 
forgotten  the  terrible  cold  and  the  pneumonia  result 
ing  from  it,  which  nearly  killed  you  eight  or  more 
years  ago?" 

"No,  no ;  I  forget  nothing,  Peter.    The  day  when 


58  UNCLE  PETER  SKED 

I  contracted  that  cold  was  raw  and  wet,  and  I  got 
soaked  to  the  skin ;  but  since  then  I  have  secured  this 
umbrella,  and  am  taking  care  of  myself." 

Sked  now  rose  to  a  sitting  posture,  and  taking  the 
faded  umbrella  from  the  ground,  removed  the  string 
which  held  it  shut,  and  opening  it,  inspected  it  as  care 
fully  as  he  could  by  the  dim  light  of  a  declining  half 
moon.  There  were  a  few  wires  loose,  a  rent  in  the 
muslin,  and  the  spring  of  the  handle  had  lost  its  elas 
ticity  ;  but  it  was  nevertheless  an  umbrella,  and  had 
been  for  at  least  ten  years.  Sked  evidently  regarded 
it  with  satisfaction,  for  when  he  laid  it  down  he  re 
marked  confidently: 

"No  danger  now,  Peter,  no  danger,  man ;  I  shall 
live  as  long  as  old  Parr.  What  a  fortune  that  man 
would  have  accumulated  if  he  had  doubled  up  his 
money  every  seven  years  of  his  life.  Eh,  Peter?" 

"But  Methusaleh  would  have  beaten  him/'  replied 
Peter  jocosely. 

"You  are  right,  my  man,"  responded  Sked ;  "sup 
pose  Methusaleh  had  started  in  life  with  ten  thousand 
dollars,  and  loaned  at  ten  per  cent.,  compounding  an 
nually,  and  doubling  up  every  seven  years  or  there 
abouts,  what  would  he  have  been  worth  at  the  day  of 
his  death?  Eh?  How  much?  There's  a  sum  for  you." 

"What  good  would  it  have  done  him  after  death?" 
asked  Peter  softly.  "What  good,  Sked?  When  you 
answer  that  I'll  figure  out  the  sum." 

"Think  of  life,  Peter,  not  death ;  let  us  choose  to 
be  cheerful,  my  man,  when  the  choice  costs  nothing." 

"But  we  must  sometime  think  of  death,"  said 
Peter  solemnly.  "Who  will  bury  us  when  we  die?" 

"What  matter,  what  matter,  man,"  replied  Sked 


GINGER  59 

angrily ;  "since  we  shall  be  unconscious  and  rest  as 
comfortably  in  the  ditch  as  in  the  church  yard." 

"Sked,  do  you  still  mind  the  child  —  the  little 
girl,"  said  Peter  in  husky  tones,  "who  died  twenty 
years  ago  ?  She  was  of  your  own  flesh  and  blood  — 
your  daughter,  Sked.  You  denied  her  the  food  and 
clothing  needed  to  keep  her  healthful.  You  put  her 
in  the  care  of  a  drunken,  disreputable  nurse  —  you 
killed  your  own  child,  man !" 

There  was  a  pause  here  in  the  soliloquy  which,  by 
chance,  was  occupied  by  the  solemn  hooting  of  an  owl, 
and  then  Sked  cried  in  angry  tones : 

"Peter,  you  lie  like  hell!" 

"I  tell  the  honest  truth,"  returned  Peter,  with  sob 
bing  voice ;  "she  lacked  food,  clothing  and  comfortable 
shelter.  She  lacked  the  companionship  of  the  young, 
and  a  mother's  care." 

The  tears  were  now  streaming  from  the  old  man's 
eyes ;  the  one  soft  spot  in  his  hardened  soul  was 
touched  and  bleeding,  possibly,  not  the  only  one  indeed, 
for  even  the  worst  men  have  streaks  of  tenderness. 
After  a  while  he  said  in  reply  to  his  accusing  con 
science  : 

"I  could  not  prevent  the  mother's  death,  Peter. 

You  are  unjust  when  accusing  me  of  depriving  Mary 

of  a  mother's  care.    I  loved  the  child,  and  God  knows 

—  if  there  be  a  God  to  know  —  how  sincerely  I  wish 

she  were  living  now." 

"Too  late,  too  late,"  muttered  Peter  sadly.  "The 
time  was  when,  if  you  had  loved  money  less  and  the 
child  more,  she  would  have  been  saved  to  you.  She 
would  perhaps  have  been  a  mother  now  with  her 
bright-faced  children  to  romp  with  you  when  you  were 
in  the  humor ;  to  greet  you  as  grandfather  always, 


60  UNCLE  PETER  SKED 

then  —  then  your  pinchings  and  hoardings  would  have 
been  to  some  purpose,  Sked  —  to  some  purpose." 

The  old  man  was  awakened  in  the  early  morning 
by  a  vigorous  shake.  Springing  to  his  feet  he  flour 
ished  his  umbrella  threateningly  at  two  young  men 
who  stood  near  him,  and  cried : 

"Stand  back,  don't  come  an  inch  nearer,  or  I'll 
brain  ye  !  Keep  off !" 

The  men  laughed  heartily  at  this  exhibition  of 
temper  and  alarm,  but  finally  one  of  them  controlled 
his  merriment  sufficiently  to  say  in  an  authoritative 
tone: 

"Come,  come,  neighbor,  we  rise  early  at  this  tav 
ern,  and  expect  our  guests  to  keep  in  a  good  humor." 

"What  d'  ye  say?"  shouted  Sked,  still  keeping  his 
umbrella  in  position  to  repel  any  sudden  attack;  ''hey? 
Do  you  own  this  straw  pile,  eh  ?" 

"It  is  common  property,  my  venerable  sir,  but  it 
is  the  custom  of  those  who  lodge  here  not  to  lie  abed 
a-taking  of  their  ease  after  sunrise.  We  simply  desired 
you  to  conform  to  the  rules  of  the  establishment.  Come, 
we  shall  have  roast  goose  for  breakfast ;  join  us." 

The  speaker  now  drew  from  its  place  of  conceal 
ment  in  the  straw,  a  fowl  which  he  had  secured  in  the 
darkness  of  the  preceding  night,  and  his  companion, 
taking  from  the  ground  a  dirty  bundle,  the  three  men 
proceeded  to  the  road  together,  Sked  was  not  disposed 
to  be  social,  but  he  was  somewhat  hungry,  and  when 
the  vagabonds  by  a  few  pleasant  words  had  mollified 
his  anger  and  dissipated  his  suspicions,  he  assented 
readily  enough  to  accompany  them  to  a  wooded  valley 
through  which  a  brook  rippled,  and  there  share  their 
morning  meal.  While  the  old  man  and  one  of  the. 


GINGER  61 

strangers  were  plucking  the  goose,  the  other  kindled  a 
fire,  and  then  preceding  with  considerable  alacrity  to 
a  neighboring  cornfield,  returned  with  an  armful  of 
roasting  ears,  which  he  stripped  of  the  husks  and  laid 
on  the  coals. 

"Goose/'  said  Sked's  companion  to  him  confiden 
tially,  "is  the  juiciest  of  domestic  fowls;  but  when  not 
thoroughly  cooked,  somewhat  difficult  for  a  toothless 
man  to  masticate.  I  trust,  my  reverend  sir,  your  grind 
ers  are  in  good  condition?" 

"What  d'ye  say,  eh?"  responded  Sked,  absently. 

"Beg  pardon,"  shouted  the  tramp,  as  if  possibly 
the  old  man's  hearing  was  defective,  "but  your  name 
has  escaped  my  memory,  and  yet  I  know  it  is  an  ancient 
and  honorable  one  —  a  famous  name  in  fact,  but  to 
save  my  life  I  can't  recall  it  on  the  instant." 

"Sked,"  said  the  old  man,  curtly,  "Sked  is  my 
name." 

"True  enough."  continued  the  man  as  he  laid  the 
goose  on  the  coals,  "I  should  have  known  it  very  well, 
but  my  memory  is  remarkable  for  forgetting  names. 
I  have  sometimes  found  it  necessary  to  be  introduced 
to  my  most  intimate  friends  several  times  —  gentlemen 
with  whom  I  have  had  transactions  of  a  pecuniary  na 
ture,  but  I  now  recollect  distinctly  that  your  name  is 
Shed  — " 

'Sked,  sir ;  Sked." 

" —  And  if  I  am  not  exceedingly  wide  of  the  mark 
your  front  name  is  Jeremiah ;  am  I  not  correct  ?" 

"You  are  not ;  it  is  Peter." 

"So  it  is,  so  it  is,"  the  tramp  continued  cheerfully, 
"I  got  the  Biblical  characters  for  a  moment  mixed. 
Peter  Sked,  a  name  elegant  enough  for  the  hero  of  a 


62  UNCLE  PETEK  SKED 

romance.  Judge  Mustard,  be  kind  enough  to  stimu 
late  the  fire." 

The  Judge,  as  he  was  called,  raked  the  coals  to 
gether  and  laid  a  few  dry  sticks  on  them. 

"We  are  highly  honored  to-day,"  resumed  the  man 
who  supervised  the  cooking,  addressing  the  Judge,  "by 
the  presence  of  our  reverend  friend,  Bishop  Peter 
Sked,  and  we  trust  he  will  make  himself  at  home  with 
us  and  partake  heartily  of  the  goose.  If  my  intellect 
is  not  wholly  out  of  joint  he  is  a  gentleman  who  can 
appreciate  a  nicely  cooked  fowl.  Sked,  Sked,  Peter 
Sked,  I  have  seen  that  name  in  a  society  journal  in 
connection  with  a  romantic  episode  —  an  elopement 
with  another  man's  —  nay,  I  think  it  was  a  giddy  and 
wayward  girl.  Ah,  Sked,  you  gay  deceiver,  how  could 
you  do  it?  But  the  power  of  some  men  over  the  fair 
sex  is  wonderful !  Judge  Mustard,  would  you  have 
thought  that  of  Bishop  Peter  Sked  ?  Look  at  him  and 
decide  under  the  solemnities  of  your  official  oath  !" 

''Mind  the  goose,  Ginger,  and  give  your  imagin 
ation  a  rest,"  said  the  Judge  sharply. 

"Well,  well,"  resumed  Ginger  in  a  regretful  tone, 
"I  shall  never  more  have  faith  in  solemn  visaged  men, 
never.  I  am  not  easily  astonished  by  freaks  of  human 
nature,  but  I  must  confess  it  was  a  surprise  to  me  to 
hear  that  the  Reverend  Bishop  Sked  had  dashed  down 
on  Saratoga  —  I  believe,  by  gad,  it  was  Newport,  in 
the  height  of  the  season,  eloped  with  the  reigning  belle, 
and  though  hotly  pursued  by  two  fond  parents  and  a 
dozen  rivals,  succeeded  in  marrying  the  girl,  and  secur 
ing  a  million  or  two  invested  in  government  sixes.  My 
reverend  sir,  while  as  a  gentleman  of  standing  and  the 
prospective  father  of  a  family,  I  cannot  approve  of 
vour  conduct  on  that  occasion,  I  nevertheless  welcome 


GINGER  63 

you  to  these  halls,  and  am  proud  to  give  you  hospitable 
entertainment.  Judge  Mustard,  look  up  a  flat,  smooth 
surfaced  stone  to  lay  the  goose  on." 

The  Judge  found  the  article  desired  in  the  shallow 
waters  of  the  little  creek,  brought  it  to  the  fire  and  laid 
it  on  the  ground  beside  Ginger.  The  goose  being  put 
upon  it,  was  divided  into  three  nearly  equal  parts,  two 
of  which  Ginger  presented  to  his  companions  on  the 
point  of  his  knife,  and  the  other  retained  for  himself. 
It  may  be  there  is  more  palatable  food  for  hungry  men 
than  a  well  cooked  goose,  supplemented  by  nicely 
roasted  corn ;  but  if  so,  Sked  and  his  entertainers  had 
never  met  it.  This  feast  was  simply  delicious  to  them. 

''The  goose,"  said  Mr.  Ginger,  with  the  air  and 
deliberation  of  a  philosopher  who  proposed  to  discuss 
the  subject  in  an  unimpassioned  way,  "is  mysterious  in 
its  origin,  useful  in  life  for  its  annual  supply  of  feath 
ers,  and  invaluable  in  death  as  food  for  hungry  men. 
Tell  me,  Bishop  Peter  Sked,  how  do  you  account  for 
the  existence  of  the  goose?" 

The  Bishop  was  too  much  engaged  to  give  the 
subject  the  consideration  it  deserved;  but  he  recog 
nized  the  importance  of  it  by  observing  briefly : 

"The  egg,  sir.    The  fowl  comes  from  the  egg." 

Ginger  stared  at  the  Bishop  in  astonishment,  then 
looking  at  the  Judge  with  the  air  of  one  to  whom  an 
important  secret  had  been  revealed,  said : 

"True  as  the  gospel,  my  reverend  sir.  Now  tell 
me  my  learned  father  whence  cometh  the  egg?" 

It  was  not  a  time  for  the  Bishop  to  go  into  details, 
and  so  he  replied : 

"From  the  goose." 

"Sir,  your  knowledge  on  this  subject  is  marvelous 
—  the  egg  from  the  goose  and  the  goose  from  the  egg ! 


64  UNCLE  PETER  SKED 

But  tell  me,  my  reverend  sir,  which  existed  first,  the 
goose  or  the  egg?  I  refer  now  to  that  remote  period 
when  the  first  goose  and  the  first  egg  appeared  on  the 
face  of  the  earth ;  which  is  the  elder  —  which  came 
first?" 

"I  don't  know !"  gruffly  replied  Sked. 

"My  dear  Bishop,  you're  too  modest.  I  think  you 
could  enlighten  me  on  this  point  if  you  would ;  still  I 
shall  not  urge  you  further,  and  yet  the  question  is  one 
over  which  I  have  pondered  seriously  for  many  years, 
and  I  cannot  at  this  time  avoid  the  painful  reflection 
that  we  should  possibly  have  gone  without  a  breakfast 
if  that  first,  original  egg  had  become  addled  or  broken, 
or  the  first  goose  perished  in  infancy.  Thus  it  is,  we 
of  the  present  find  ourselves  indebted  for  the  food  we 
eat  to  the  pre-historic  past,  to  that  far  off  period  \vhen 
the  first  goose  was  a  fragile  gosling.  Sir,  do  you  real 
ize  fully  the  narrowness  of  our  escape  from  starvation? 
But  to  change  the  topic  somewhat,  tell  me,  my  good 
Bishop,  upon  what  theory  do  men  claim  to  own  geese, 
and  forbid  others  to  appropriate  them  for  food  or 
feathers  ?'' 

Sked's  last  mouthful  was  so  nearly  disposed  of  that 
he  was  prepared  to  answer  at  some  length. 

"On  the  theory,  sir,  that  men  should  own  and  con 
trol  what  they  make  —  what  they  care  for  and  preserve 
—  what  would  not  exist  but  for  their  watchfulness  and 
foresight,  eh?v 

"My  reverend  sir,  your  theory  has  nothing  to  stand 
on  —  it  is  legless.  Did  man  create  either  egg  or 
goose  ?  No  ;  he  lacks  the  power  to  make  a  living  thing. 
Did  man  preserve  the  egg  or  goose?  Impossible,  for 
both  antedated  him.  How  can  it  be  said  then  that  what 
existed  and  multiplied  before  man  came,  exists  now 


GINGER  65 

only  because  of  his  watchfulness  and  foresight?  Sir, 
a  goose  is  common  property,  and  so  is  land,  and  water 
and  air.  My  reverend  friend,  you  and  I,  and  all  other 
men  are  joint  owners  and  equal  partners ;  we  own  the 
world !  When  by  hook  or  crook  another  gets  more 
than  his  equal  share  he  becomes  a  thief,  and  when  I 
take  from  him  what  is  needed  to  satisfy  my  wants  I 
seize  what  nature  intended  for  my  special  use." 

The  old  man  having  finished  his  breakfast,  now 
rose  to  his  feet,  and  answered  angrily : 

"Then  if  I  am  industrious,  watchful,  painstaking, 
and  sow  and  reap,  eh  ?  I  have  no  special  claim  to  what 
I  gather  —  to  what  I  save  —  to  the  corn  and  wheat 
which  would  not  have  grown  but  for  my  labor,  patience 
and  skill.  You  are  an  ass,  sir !" 

Ginger  laughing  at  this  display  of  temper,  replied  : 

"Thank  you,  my  reverend  sir,  for  your  courteous 
and  gentle  language,  but  who  asked  you  to  either  sow 
or  reap?  By  what  right  do  you  inclose  a  thousand 
acres  of  our  common  property,  destroy  its  forests,  and 
dig  up  its  soil,  when  ten  would  be  sufficient  for  all 
your  natural  wants?  The  people  whom  we  succeed 
held  these  lands  in  common,  and  lived  as  happily,  for 
aught  you  know,  as  men  do  now.  The  forests  sup 
plied  them  with  fruit,  and  flesh  for  food,  and  skins  for 
clothing,  and  the  valleys  gave  them  corn  and  what  lit 
tle  else  they  needed.  Now  men  are  not  satisfied  to 
simply  provide  for  their  own  wants,  but  grasp  and 
hoard  and  hold  while  other  and  better  men  freeze  and 
starve  and  die.  This  is  a  monstrous  wrong,  sir.  The 
man  who  holds  a  thousand  acres  and  needs  but  ten  to 
keep  him,  and  the  man  who  hides  away  millions  while 


66  UNCLE  PETER  SKED 

others  are  suffering  for  food,  are  robbers  —  robbers, 
my  good  sir." 

"Well,  well,  have  it  your  own  way  —  it  may  be  as 
you  say.  Good  morning." 

"Don't  be  in  haste,  my  reverend  sir,"  cried  Ginger, 
as  the  old  man  was  walking  off,  "a  little  argument  will 
help  digestion." 

"Thank  you,  I  must  get  on ;  I  have  far  to  go.  Good 
day." 

"Call  again,"  shouted  Ginger,  "we  keep  open 
house." 

Sked  made  no  reply,  but  when  he  reached  the  road 
he  muttered  to  himself  : 

"Open  and  wide  and  airy,  but  I  think  I  prefer  to 
be  alone,  for  if  these  young  men  found  I  had  money 
with  me  they  might  conclude  two-thirds  of  it  belonged 
to  them,  and  when  the  two-thirds  were  gone  they 
would  probably  decide  to  take  two-thirds  of  the  one- 
third,  and  so  continue  to  make  divisions  until  neither 
they  nor  I  had  a  penny  left." 


VI 

A  STATESMAN 

THE  vagabonds  had  more  time  just  now  at  their 
disposal  than  they  needed.  After  idling  away 
an  hour  or  two  of  the  morning  in  the  grateful  shadow 
of  the  trees,  Mustard,  who  appeared  to  be  the  more 
practical  and  energetic  member  of  the  firm,  extricated 
from  his  bundle  a  number  of  tiny  glass  phials  such  as 
druggists  use  to  contain  liquid  medicines,  and  going  to 
the  creek  filled  them  with  water,  corked  them  nicely, 
and  then  pasted  on  each  a  printed  label  bearing  the 
words  "Great  American  Ache  Annihilator ;"  when  this 
work  was  completed  to  his  satisfaction,  and  his  bundle 
rearranged,  he  notified  the  now  recumbent  and  drowsy 
Ginger  it  was  time  to  be  moving,  and  without  giving 
further  attention  to  his  companion,  walked  away. 

Ginger  rising,  stretched  himself  and  after  a  pre 
liminary  yawn,  and  a  three  minute  speech  on  the  folly 
of  haste,  and  the  wisdom  of  husbanding  one's  re 
sources,  started  to  follow  his  disappearing  comrade. 

It  was  perhaps  three  o'clock  in  the  afternoon  when 
the  tramps  entered  Bearwood,  a  village  of  two  thou 
sand  souls  and  a  county  seat.  Horses  attached  to  farm 
wagons  and  lighter  vehicles  were  standing  to  hitching 
posts  in  front  of  stores  and  shops,  and  the  sidewalks 
were  filled  with  country  people  who  had  come  to  town 
to  sell  products  of  the  farm  and  buy  weekly  supplies 
of  merchandise.  Many  of  these  were  clad  in  rough 
working  clothes,  and  some  of  them  not  so  well  dressed 

(67) 


68 

even  as  Ginger  and  Mustard.  The  two  latter,  there 
fore,  were  not  at  all  likely  to  attract  special  attention 
to  themselves  by  the  shabbiness  of  their  attire. 

The  vagabonds  now  separated,  Mustard  going  to 
the  opposite  side  of  the  street,  walked  slowly  so  that 
his  companion  might  get  well  in  advance  of  him.  On 
reaching  the  center  of  the  village  Ginger  stopped, 
drew  an  empty  store-box  to  the  curbstone,  laid  the 
phials  which  Mustard  had  filled  at  the  creek  upon  it, 
and  began  to  sing  in  a  good,  round  pleasant  voice.  In 
less  than  five  minutes  half  the  unoccupied  people  of 
the  towrn  gathered  about  him,  then  he  told  amusing 
stories  and  finally  entered  upon  ^  lively  and  eloquent 
eulogy  of  the  great  American  Ache  Annihilator,  which 
he  now  offered  for  sale. 

If  the  statements  which  Dr.  Ginger  made  with 
respect  to  the  curative  powers  of  this  medicine  can 
be  relied  upon,  it  was  the  most  valuable  compound 
ever  concocted  by  medical  scientists.  Thousands  to 
whom  life  had  become  a  burden  had  been  rendered 
happy  by  the  use  of  it. 

"What  is  life,"  cried  Ginger,  ''to  one  \vho  has  an 
aching  ear,  a  throbbing  tooth,  or  a  griping  stomach? 
He  may  be  worth  millions,  and  yet  be  miserable ;  he 
may  have  a  pleasant  home,  a  lovely  wife,  and  an  inter 
esting  family,  and  still  wish  he  had  never  been  born. 
All  nature  appears  to  his  disturbed  vision  as  if  clad  in 
the  habiliments  of  woe." 

"Come,  now,"  he  continued,  "give  me  an  oppor 
tunity  to  prove  the  remedy  is  all  I  represent  it  to  be. 
If  I  fail  to  cure  the  most  obstinate  case,  I  shall 
throw  my  medicine  away,  and  acknowledge  myself  a 
cheat." 

Dr.  Ginger's  exhortation  was  here  interrupted ;  a 


A  STATESMAN  69 

man  whose  face  was  partially  concealed  with  a  band 
age,  pushing  through  the  crowd,  presented  himself  as 
a  subject  for  medical  attention. 

"Hello!"  shouted  Ginger,  "what  is  your  jaw  tied 
up  for?  It  is  the  custom  in  this  blessed  country  to  let 
the  jaw  loose  —  to  give  it  full  play.  Allow  me  to 
remove  the  bandage  —  there.  Now,  what's  your  name,, 
my  man?" 

"Pigstaff,  Jacob  Pigstaff.  sir." 

"Ah,  you  come  of  a  prolific  family,  Pigstaff,  you 
are  born  in  droves  —  when  young,  pig ;  later  the  prop 
of  your  parents,  hence,  staff.  Now  Pigstaff  open  your 
mouth  and  let  me  see  what  you  had  for  dinner  —  a 
little  wider,  Pigstaff  —  never  fear,  I  shall  not  crawl  in. 
Ah !  an  ulcerated  grinder,  a  quack  w.ould  pull  it ;  I 
shall  not.  It  took  nature  twenty  years  to  make  it,  and 
was  intended  to  last  through  life.  Is  it  of  the  jumping 
kind,  Pigstaff?" 

"Very  jumpin',  sir." 

"I  thought  so;  the  cheek  is  swollen.  It  is  as  well 
developed  as  a  politician's,  Pigstaff.  I  have  known 
cases  of  cheek  no  worse  than  this  to  carry  men  to  — 
Congress.  But  never  fear.  Pigstaff.  I  shall  save  you. 
Now  let  me  put  just  one  drop  of  the  great  American 
Ache  Annihilator  on  your  tongue.  It  will  not  do  to 
waste  the  medicine,  for  it  is  precious.  Hold  the  liquid 
in  your  mouth  and  allow  it  to  mingle  with  the  saliva. 
Fellow  citizens,  the  teeth  of  thousands  of  people  young 
and  old  have  been  saved  by  the  timely  application  of 
this  remedy.  It  not  only  quiets  the  nerve,  soothes  the 
irritation,  but  hardens  the  bone  and  in  time  gives  to 
it  the  whiteness  of  ivory.  No  cure,  no  pay.  is  my  mot 
to.  I  despise  a  humbug  and  abhor  a  quack.  Swallow 
the  fluid  Picrstaff  and  tell  us  how  vou  feel." 


70  UNCLE  PETER  SKED 

"Well,"  responded  the  patient. 

''Does  the  tooth  ache  at  all  —  are  there  any  throb- 
bings  at  the  root  —  any  sensations  of  pain  whatever?'' 

''Not  as  I  feels,  sir/' 

"Not  as  PigstafT  feels,  gentlemen.  If  there  were 
any,  Pigstaft"  would  be  more  likely  to  feel  them  than 
anybody  else.  Are  you  satisfied,  Pigstaff?" 

"I  am,  sir." 

"Well,  then,  depart  in  peace.  Now,  gentlemen 
and  ladies,  if  you  desire  to  buy,  do  so  at  once,  or  I 
shall  discontinue  the  sale.  I  have  already  spent  time 
enough  to  sell  a  hundred  bottles  —  thank  you  —  two 
bottles  for  one  dollar;  will  you  take  twor  That's 
right  —  that's  sensible.  They  will  last  your  family  for 
years,  and  save  the  expenditure  of  a  hundred  dollars 
to  dentists."  And  thus  Dr.  Ginger  continued  until  he 
had  disposed  of  all  the  phials  filled  by  Mustard  at  the 
creek. 

At  eight  o'clock  in  the  evening  Dr.  Ginger  deliv 
ered  an  eloquent  and  amusing  speech  from  the  balcony 
of  the  village  hotel  in  support  of  the  issues  presented 
by  the  Greenback  party,  and  at  ten  o'clock  was  so  hope 
lessly  and  helplessly  intoxicated  that  Mustard  found  it 
necessary  to  obtain  assistance  to  carry  him  to  a  bed. 

Mr.  Travis  had  been  sitting  in  the  office  of  the 
Bearwood  hotel  enjoying  an  after  dinner  cigar,  while 
Dr.  Ginger  was  delivering  his  eloquent  appeal  in  favor 
of  the  unlimited  issue  of  paper  money,  and  it  occurred 
to  him  that  the  orator  could  be  made  useful  in  the 
Cranberry  district.  The  Greenback  party  was  neither 
a  large  nor  compact  body,  but  in  almost  every  voting 
precinct  a  few  members  of  it  could  be  found,  enough. 


A  STATESMAN  71 

in  brief,  to  render  their  action  of  considerable  import 
ance  in  a  close  election. 

Not  desiring  to  negotiate  with  Ginger  directly, 
Mr.  Travis  authorized  a  professional  friend  whom  he 
had  been  assisting  in  a  law  case,  to  attend  to  the  mat 
ter,  and  himself  departed  for  home  on  the  midnight 
train. 

When  this  friend  sought  Dr.  Ginger  the  next 
morning,  he  found  him  duly  sober  and  ready  to  en 
gage  in  the  work  proposed  providing  Mustard  were 
employed  also.  As  the  condition  suggested  had  not 
been  anticipated  by  Mr.  Travis,  a  telegram  was  sent 
to  that  gentleman  and  negotiations  suspended  until  he 
should  be  heard  from. 

Whatever  there  may  be  to  be  said  against  Dr. 
Ginger,  it  must  at  least  be  admitted  that  he  was  loyal 
to  his  friend.  The  tie  uniting  the  two  men  it  would 
probably  be  difficult  to  ascertain.  The  one  was  edu 
cated,  bright  and  full  of  humor ;  the  other  dull,  reticent 
and  at  times  morose.  It  may  have  been  this  diversity  of 
talent  and  temperament  which  rendered  association 
mutually  agreeable ;  possibly  the  less  versatile  Mustard 
possessed  the  steadier  nerve  and  cooler  judgment 
which  in  all  practical  affairs  made  him  the  better  and 
safer  man.  It  is  possible,  also,  that  Ginger  had  been 
frequently  indebted  to  his  equally  idle,  but  more  pru 
dent  companion,  for  acts  of  rough  personal  kindness. 
It  may  be  reasonably  conjectured  also,  that  by  using 
Ginger  when  he  was  sober  and  caring  for  him  when 
drunk,  Mustard  was  enabled  to  obtain  the  money 
needed  to  keep  body  and  soul  together  more  easily 
than  he  could  otherwise  have  done  by  any  such  indi 
vidual  effort  as  he  was  at  all  inclined  to  put  forth. 
But  let  all  this  be  as  it  mav,  the  two  men  were  firm 


72  UNCLE  PETEE  SKED 

in  their  determination  to  remain  together,  and  Mr. 
Travis,  finding  he  could  not  secure  the  services  of  one 
without  retaining  the  other,  reluctantly  concluded  to 
employ  both. 

After  the  terms  had  been  fully  agreed  upon,  the 
tramps  were  supplied  with  respectable  but  not  ex 
pensive  apparel,  and  sent  to  Mr.  Travis'  town. 

On  the  morning  succeeding  their  arrival  in  Cran 
berry,  those,  prompted  by  curiosity  or  otherwise,  to 
inspect  the  register  of  the  village  hotel,  found  in 
scribed  thereon  in  the  flowing  and  legible  hand  of  Dr. 
Ginger  the  names  of  Colonel  Arthur  Albright  and  Mr. 
Charles  Winship.  Ginger  was  simply  the  professional 
appellation  of  the  former,  and  Mustard  and  Pigstaff 
two  of  numerous  aliases  under  which  the  latter  had 
been  cured  a  hundred  times  for  the  glorification  of  the 
ache  annihilator,  and  the  profit  of  its  vendors. 

Before  the  bell  rang  for  supper  half  the  people  of 
the  village  had  ascertained  that  two  gentlemen  of  great 
distinction  were  domiciled  at  the  Cranberry  hotel, 
and  before  the  evening  was  far  spent  it  was  noised 
abroad  that  they  had  come  to  work  in  the  interest  of 
the  Greenback  party,  and  that  one  of  them,  namely 
Colonel  Arthur  Albright,  was  especially  severe  in  his 
denunciations  of  corporations,  bond-holders,  and  what 
he  termed  the  money  power. 

While  the  Colonel  did  not  hesitate  to  affirm  that 
both  the  old  parties  had  been  false  to  their  promises, 
and  unmindful  of  the  people,  he  felt  called  upon  as  an 
honest  citizen,  to  condemn  with  emphatic  bitterness  that 
party  of  organized  robbers  and  confederated  tyrants 
which  had  placed  the  detestable  Alexander  Hamilton 
Popper  in  nomination  for  Congress.  What  the  coun 
try  needed  above  all  things  in  this  period  of  business 


A  STATESMAN  73 

depression,  was  more  money.  How  in  the  name  of 
common  sense  could  the  affairs  of  a  great  nation  be 
carried  on  successfully  upon  the  present  volume  of 
currency?  Did  anybody  ever  have  too  much  money? 
No,  the  idea  that  there  could  be  too  much  was  pre 
posterous.  Congress  should  authorize  the  issue  of  a 
thousand  million  at  its  next  session,  and  keep  issuing. 
Then  factories  would  start ;  furnaces  would  blaze ; 
farm  products  would  command  reasonable  prices.  Then 
money  shavers  would  not  be  gathering  in  ten  per  cent. 
Merchants  would  not  be  forced  into  bankruptcy ;  hon 
est  farmers  would  not  be  sold  out  by  the  sheriff;  the 
rich  would  not  be  getting  richer,  and  the  poor  poorer. 
But  if  men  like  Popper  were  elected,  times  would  grow 
harder,  wages  lower  and  lower,  until  the  wolf  would 
be  at  every  laboring  man's  door,  and  the  wealth  of  the 
whole  country  seized  by  purse  proud  aristocrats.  Are 
the  people  ready  for  this?  //  not,  vote  against  Popper. 

The  Colonel  did  not  assume  to  know  anything 
definitely  about  Mr.  Travis ;  he  had  been  told,  however, 
that  he  was  an  able  lawyer  and  an  honest  man,  and 
that  he  favored  an  expansion  of  the  currency.  If  all 
this  were  true,  he  was  infinitely  preferable  to  Popper, 
who  held  that  money  might  become  too  abundant.  Too 
abundant !  Are  any  of  you  afraid  of  getting  too 
much?  Have  any  of  you  got  too  much?  If  so,  divide 
with  your  neighbor;  pay  off  the  mortgage  on  some 
poor  man's  house.  Give  some  laboring  man  a  holiday. 
Nonsense !  There  can  not  be  too  much  money. 

Colonel  Albright's  short  exhortation  in  the  office 
of  the  hotel  was  pretty  generally  approved  by  those 
who  heard  it.  Mr.  Calhoun  Jones,  growing  enthusi 
astic,  declared  with  profane  emphasis  that  the  argu 
ment  was  unanswerable.  Our  venerable  friend,  Dea- 


74  UNCLE  PETER  SKED 

con  Gum,  however,  derived  no  pleasure  from  either 
the  Colonel's  speech  or  presence.  He  felt  that  he 
could  not  maintain  himself  creditably  in  a  discussion 
with  so  ready  and  eloquent  an  opponent,  and  yet  to 
sit  quietly  by  and  allow  the  utterances  of  a  Green- 
backer  to  go  unchallenged  might  subject  him  to  the 
charge  of  cowardice.  His  reputation  as  a  leader  de 
manded  that  he  should  at  least  demonstrate  his  ca 
pacity  for  leadership  on  this  occasion  by  making  prom 
inent  the  principles  of  his  own  party.  When  intro 
duced  to  the  Colonel  by  the  officious  Jones,  he  there 
fore  said : 

"I  am  glad  to  make  your  acquaintance,  sir,  and 
hope  to  know  you  better.  I  trust  you  w7ill  pardon  me 
for  suggesting  that  in  your  discourse  you  have  over 
looked  the  most  important  issue,  and  the  only  one  at  all 
worthy  of  the  consideration  of  a  Christian  people.  I 
trust  you  will  pardon  me  if  I  tell  you — 

"Certainly,  certainly.  Deacon  Gum,"  said  the  Col 
onel  interrupting  him,  "certainly,  my  dear  Deacon. 
This  is  a  free  country,  sir,  the  land  of  free  speech  and 
free  men."  Thrusting  his  thumbs  in  the  arm  holes 
of  his  waist  coat,  the  Colonel  continued  in  a  tone  which 
utterly  overwhelmed  Ebenezer's  piping  voice.  "Sir,  I 
am  pleased  to  meet  a  gentleman  wrho  stands  up  for 
his  own  convictions  until  by  argument  he  is  con 
vinced  they  are  unfounded.  No,  no,  Brother  Gum, 
satisfy  me  you  are  right  and  I  shall  follow  you.  I  am 
neither  too  proud  nor  too  obstinate  to  listen  to  the 
truth  and  be  guided  by  it.  I  conclude,  my  dear  sir, 
that  you  are  a  supporter  of  the  detestable  Popper,  that 
you  would  contract  the  currency  ;  that  you  would  make 
it  impossible  for  a  poor  man  to  live.  Sir,  I  take  it  you 
believe  in  protecting  corporations,  bondholders,  capital- 


A  STATESMAN  75 

ists  —  the  strong.  Fellow  citizens,  it  is  the  poor  and 
weak  who  need  protection.  My  dear  Deacon,  of  all 
the  parties  on  this  green  earth  the  one  to  which  you 
belong " 

"Hold  on,  sir,"  screamed  Ebenezer  in  desperation. 

— is  the  most  corrupt.     It  has  its  viselike  and 

cruel  clutch  on  the  throat  of  the  poor.     It  is  sweeping 

American  vessels  from  the  high  seas.     It  is  paralyzing 

all  the  diversified  industries  of  a  free  people.   It  is ' 

"I  am  not  a  Republican,"  shouted  Gum  at  the  top 
of  his  voice. 

"Pardon  me,  Brother  Gum,"  Albright  continued 
in  a  still  higher  tone,  "I  am  rejoiced  to  hear  you  say 
so.  It  affords  me  great  satisfaction  to  know  that  if 
not  an  honest  Greenbacker  you  are  at  least  an  intelli 
gent  Democrat,  and  I  therefore,  extend  to  you  the 

right  hand  of " 

"I  am  not,  I  am  not,"  screamed  Gum,  "I  am 
not ' 

''Ah !  my  dear  friend,"  continued  the  Colonel  with 
swelling  voice,  ''I  see,  I  see ;  you  belong  to  Victoria 
Woodhull's  party.  There's  much  in  it ;  she  is  a  great 
and  good  woman  and  a  born  leader.  I  can  understand 
and  appreciate,  my  worthy  sir,  the  knightly  sentiment 
which  prompts  you  to  rally  to  her  standard.  Your  ac 
tion  does  credit  to  your  heart,  though  it  may,  in  the 
judgment  of  the  great  mass,  be  disparaging  to  your 
intellect :  but  if  the  heart  be  right  it  matters  little  if 
the  head  be  wrong.  The  motive  is  the  test  by  which 
men  should  be  judged.  Ah  !  that  lovely  woman ;  she 
is  the  Joan  D'Arc  of  politics.  Sir,  at  any  other  crisis 
in  the  affairs  of  the  Republic,  I  should  join  you  and 
follow  her,  but  until  the  country  is  supplied  with  a 
currency  adequate  to  the  demands  of  trade  and  poor 


76  UNCLE  PETER  SKED 

men's  rights  are  recognized.  I  shall  stand  by  the  green 
back  party,  and  yet  I  confess,  my  dear  sir,  the  tempta 
tion  to  enlist  under  the  banner  of  Victoria  is  almost  ir 
resistible." 

Gum  was  intellectually  overwhelmed ;  the  Col 
onel  roared  at  him  with  the  lungs  of  Stentor.  Neigh 
bors  were  laughing  heartily  at  his  discomfiture.  He 
stood  no  more  chance  of  making  himself  heard  than  a 
penny  whistle  amid  the  clamor  of  a  foghorn.  Unable 
to  endure  his  humiliation  longer,  he  turned  on  his  heel 
abruptly  and  left  the  room.  Then  the  Colonel's  ad 
mirers  sent  up  a  loud  shout  of  victory,  and  the  next 
day  it  was  known  all  over  the  town  of  Cranberry  that 
the  Deacon  had  been  completely  pulverized  in  argu 
ment  by  the  gallant  Colonel.  Thus  it  happened  that 
within  forty-eight  hours  after  Albright's  arrival,  his 
name  was  on  everybody's  tongue,  and  many  people 
were  of  the  opinion  that  he  was  a  greater  statesman 
even  than  Mr.  Travis. 


VII 

LILIAN  MOORE 

WHILE  the  young  men  of  Cranberry  gave  Col 
onel  Albright  credit  for  great  ability,  and  were 
pleased  to  associate  with  him,  or  receive  even  a  nod 
in  way  of  recognition  as  they  passed  him  on  the  street, 
the  young  ladies  of  the  town  were  looking  modestly 
out  of  the  corners  of  their  bright  eyes  to  catch  a 
glimpse  of  the  distinguished  young  statesman,  and 
speculating  as  to  whether  he  were  still  uncaptured,  and 
hence  a  lawful  prize  for  any  one  of  them  to  seize  upon 
and  appropriate  to  domestic  uses.  When,  therefore,  on 
the  pleasant  Sabbath  which  succeeded  his  arrival,  he 
lighted  a  cigar  and  left  the  hotel  for  a  morning  walk, 
it  was  generally  known  that  he  was  abroad  and  many 
curtains  were  cautiously  drawn  aside  by  fair  hands  to 
enable  marriageable  heads  to  observe  him  as  he  passed, 
and  form  a  hasty  estimate  of  his  true  value  as  a  lover 
and  a  family  man.  There  were,  doubtless,  some 
sparkling  eyes  and  fluttering  hearts,  for  Colonel  Al 
bright  was  a  straight  stout  handsome  fellow  whose 
head  was  in  the  air,  and  stride  easy  and  graceful. 

Turning  to  the  right  at  the  first  crossing  he  pro 
ceeded  leisurely  along  an  avenue  flanked  on  eithe^r 
hand  by  tasteful  cottages  until  he  reached  the  bridge 
which  spans  a  little  river ;  here  he  stopped  and,  leaning 
against  the  wooden  railing,  looked  down  upon  the 
rippling  current  apparently  absorbed  in  his  own  reflec 
tions.  Tt  is  possible  he  was  thinking  soberly  of  wasted 

(77) 


78  UNCLE  PETER  SKED 

opportunities  and  resolving  that  he  would  make  an 
other  effort  for  a  better  life.  Xo  persons  so  think  and 
resolve  oftener  than  those  whose  thinking  leads  to  no 
good  results,  and  whose  resolutions  melt  away  under 
the  fire  of  the  first  temptation. 

Whatever  the  tendency  of  the  Colonel's  medita 
tions  may  have  been  at  first,  it  is  quite  certain  they 
soon  became  quite  cheerful,  for  he  whistled  the  air  of  a 
lively  song  and  then  sang  the  words  of  it.  The  river 
marked  the  eastern  boundary  of  the  village,  and  be 
yond  it  was  a  narrow  strip  of  bottom  land  on  which 
sheep  were  grazing;  still  further  away  in  the  same 
direction  were  the  higher  grounds,  with  here  and 
there  a  farm  house  visible.  The  Colonel  finally  turned 
to  resume  his  walk  and  as  he  did  so,  found  himself 
face  to  face  with  a  young  girl  who  carried  a  hymn 
book,  and  was  evidently  on  her  way  to  attend  morning 
service.  It  may  have  been  the  quick  blush  mantling 
her  face,  or  the  cluster  of  fragrant  rose  buds  at  her 
throat,  or  the  bright  ribbons  of  her  bonnet,  or  the  deli 
cate  texture  and  tasteful  fashion  of  her  dress,  which 
smote  the  Colonel's  heart,  confused  his  intellect,  and 
made  him  forget  his  song,  and  for  a  moment,  his  sur 
roundings,  and  even  himself.  It  is  quite  certain,  at  any 
rate,  that  some  one  of  these  things,  or  all  combined, 
had  flashed  upon  him  like  a  revelation  and  temporarily 
disturbed  his  mental  equipoise.  When  the  girl  had 
passed  quickly  on  toward  the  town  and  he  finally  re 
covered  his  five  senses  or  so  many  of  them  as  had  been 
for  the  time  lost  or  paralyzed,  he  reconsidered  his  reso 
lution  to  explore  the  country  beyond  the  river,  and 
turning,  followed  her  back  to  the  village. 

As  they  approached  the  church  the  throng  of 
people  all  going  in  the  same  direction,  became  greater, 


LILIAN  MORE  79 

and  taking  advantage  of  this  he  was  enabled  to  get 
quite  near  her,  so  near  indeed,  that  they  entered  the 
vestibule  together ;  but  here  she  left  him,  and  turning 
to  the  right  ascended  the  stairway  leading  to  the  gal 
lery  of  the  choir. 

For  the  first  time  in  many  years  the  Colonel  found 
himself  inside  a  house  of  worship.  Taking  a  seat  well 
forward  and  next  to  the  wall,  he  sat  quite  erect  with 
his  face  to  the  front  for  a  few  minutes,  then  turning 
suddenly  to  the  gallery  he  saw  the  eyes  of  the  woman 
of  his  heart  fall  quickly  on  the  book  before  her,  as  if 
having  permitted  her  thoughts  to  wander  for  a  mo 
ment  from  her  religious  duties,  she  sought  to  get  back 
to  them  as  soon  as  possible.  She  was  a  lovely  girl  and 
the  Colonel's  active  brain  was  busy  building  castles  of 
which  she  either  was  or  was  to  be  the  sole  female 
tenant,  or  perhaps  it  would  be  safer  to  say  the  chief 
one.  for  it  would  be  an  inconsiderable  castle,  indeed, 
where  ladies'  maids,  housekeepers  and  cooks  could  not 
be  introduced  to  badger  the  mistress,  and  keep  her 
duly  alive  to  the  fact  that  there  was  a  better  world 
for  which  she  should  not  fail  to  make  timely  prep 
aration. 

The  church  was  filling  rapidly.  Two  well  dressed 
young  ladies  and  an  elderly  gentleman  entered  the 
pew,  which  the  Colonel  in  part  occupied,  with  so  little 
ceremony  as  to  suggest  that  it  was  intended  for  their 
exclusive  use.  A  few  minutes  later  a  large  ruddy- 
faced  farmer  stopped  at  the  door  of  the  seat  imme 
diately  in  front,  while  the  members  of  his  family  filed 
into  it  in  proper  order.  This  was  our  friend  Dundren 
with  his  wife  and  children  and  Gertrude  Frazier.  The 
Dundren  pew  being  too  small  to  accommodate  com 
fortably  all  who  sought  admission  to  it,  the  elderly 


80  UNCLE  PETEK  BKED 

gentleman  invited  the  farmer  to  accept  a  seat  with 
him,  and  this  necessitated  a  shifting  of  the  two  young 
ladies  to  the  right  and  so  completely  filled  the  space 
that  the  Colonel  found  it  impossible  to  turn  sufficiently 
to  continue  his  observations  of  the  gallery. 

When  the  congregation  rose  to  sing,  the  lady  who 
stood  by  the  Colonel's  side,  kindly  offered  him  the 
use  of  one-half  of  her  hymn  book,  a  courtesy  politely 
recognized  and  accepted. 

The  Colonel's  character,  as  has  been  suggested, 
had  its  defects,  but  his  voice  had  none.  It  was  full  of 
power,  majesty  and  sweetness,  and  could  rise  and 
swell  and  ring  out  like  the  chimes  of  a  cathedral,  and 
then  fall  and  soften  and  die  away  to  the  whispering 
murmurs  of  a  harp.  The  choir  might  have  sung  that 
day  as  sweetly  as  it  ever  did  before,  but  there  was  but 
one  voice  recognized,  and  when,  at  the  conclusion  of 
the  service,  the  congregation  filed  out  of  the  church, 
there  was  but  one  mentioned  approvingly,  and  that  was 
the  voice  of  Colonel  Albright,  the  great  leader  of  the 
Greenback  party. 

The  Colonel  was  in  no  haste  to  abandon  the  scene, 
of  his  triumph,  and  therefore  lingered  until  the  aisles 
ceased  to  be  crowded  by  the  outgoing  congregation. 
When  he  left  the  church  the  people  were  in  groups  on 
the  lawn  exchanging  friendly  greetings,  and  as  he  was 
proceeding  leisurely  to  the  street,  Mr.  Travis  called  to 
him. 

"Colonel  Albright,"  said  the  lawyer,  "allow  me  to 
introduce  you  to  Mr.  Dundren." 

The  two  gentlemen  shook  hands,  but  before  they 
had  time  to  engage  in  conversation,  Mrs.  Dundren  and 
the  girl  whom  the  Colonel  had  met  at  the  bridge  came 
up  and  were  presented  to  him. 


LILIAN  MORE  81 

Mr.  Travis  had  attached  himself  to  Dundren  on 
this  occasion  for  the  purpose  of  getting  an  opportunity 
to  pay  his  respects  to  Gertrude  Frazier.  During  the 
past  two  or  three  weeks  he  had  been  too  much  occupied 
by  his  political  engagements  to  give  proper  attention 
to  his  social  duties,  and  he  now  desired  to  assure  her 
of  this  fact.  He  had  perhaps  no  good  reason  for  think 
ing  she  cared  particularly  whether  he  were  present  or 
absent ;  still  she  was  an  unmarried  woman  of  good 
estate,  who  was  not  at  all  likely  to  go  through  life 
alone,  and  he  knew  of  no  one  within  the  circle  of  their 
acquaintance  who,  in  respect  to  wealth  and  distinction, 
was  more  likely  to  be  acceptable  to.  her  than  himself. 
Indeed,  there  were,  so  far  as  he  could  ascertain,  no 
rivals  in  the  field  against  him.  Women  at  Gertrude's 
age  are  never  demonstrative ;  they  have  the  good  sense 
to  deport  themselves  like  rational  beings  until  a  pro 
position  is  made,  and  then  accept  it  without  any  ridic 
ulous  display  of  emotion.  Passion  is  riotous,  solicitous 
and  indelicate ;  but  love  dignified,  retiring,  serene  and 
reticent.  He  could  not  doubt  that  she  would  have  the 
good  sense  to  accept  him,  and  he  had  concluded  there 
would  be  no  better  time  to  make  the  offer  than  on  the 
day  succeeding  his  election.  In  the  meantime  she  must 
not  be  permitted  to  attribute  his  prolonged  absence 
during  the  campaign  to  any  diminution  of  his  regard 
for  her. 

He  knew  of  Gertrude's  engagement  to  Robert 
Brett,  but  that  was  an  affair  of  ten  years  ago,  and 
might  be  attributed  to  the  indiscretion  of  youth.  She 
had  probably  forgotten  her  old  lover.  He  had  cer 
tainly  not  been  heard  from  since  his  departure,  and 
would  probably  never  be  again.  People  of  the  neigh- 

6 


82  UNCLE  PETER  SKED 

borhood  in  which  he  once  lived  had  about  ceased  to 
speak  of  him.  His  sudden  disappearance  was,  in  Mr. 
Travis'  opinion,  very  fortunate  for  Gertrude.  She  had 
probably  long  since  made  this  discovery  herself,  and 
would  doubtless  now  be  pleased  to  form  an  alliance 
with  one  of  equal  wealth  and  congenial  tastes. 

The  courtships  of  those  advanced  beyond  the  first 
strong  impulses  of  youth  are  generally  conducted  with 
great  deliberation.  The  boy  of  twenty  and  girl  of  sev 
enteen  reach  a  conclusion  in  six  months,  which  the 
older  couple  may  not  arrive  at  in  six  years,  and  possi 
bly  not  in  sixteen.  The  latter  have  lived  long  enough 
to  know  that  happiness  does  not  always  follow  wedlock 
and  they  are  therefore  in  no  special  haste. 

Colonel  Albright,  through  Mr.  Travis'  introduc 
tion,  ascertained  that  the  name  of  the  red  cheeked 
maiden  whom  he  had  met  at  the  bridge  was  Lilian 
More,  and  subsequently  learned  that  her  widowed 
mother  owned  the  handsome  farm  which  lay  just  be- 
vond  the  river.  As  he  returned  leisurely  to  the  hotel 
it  occurred  to  him  that  he  had  an  interest  in  widow 
More's  farm,  and  should  at  least  make  an  effort  to 
perfect  his  title  to  it.  He  was  now  on  confidential  re 
lations  with  the  candidate  for  Congress,  on  speaking 
terms  with  half  the  voters  of  the  village,  and  known 
by  reputation  to  all  of  them.  It  would  therefore,  be 
strange  indeed  if  he  should  not  be  able  to  reach  through 
this  young  girl's  heart  one  of  those  soft  places  in  life, 
which,  according  to  his  theory,  belonged  as  rightfully 
to  him  as  to  anybody. 

Strangers  seen  in  the  company  of  reputable  peo 
ple  are,  in  villages  and  country  neighborhoods  at  least, 
usually  considered  worthy  of  all  confidence,  and  hence 
find  little  difficulty  in  obtaining  admission  to  almost  any 


LILIAN  MOKE  83 

household.  While  Albright  could  probably  not  have 
gone  alone  to  widow  More's  and  secured  an  interview 
with  the  daughter,  it  was  nevertheless  easy  enough  on 
this  pleasant  Sunday  to  induce  Mr.  Calhoun  Jones  to 
join  him  in  an  after  dinner  stroll,  and  \vhen  they  had 
crossed  the  river  and  ascended  the  hill  beyond,  to  ask 
if  he  knew  who  lived  in  the  handsome  cottage  they 
were  approaching.  Mr.  Jones,  of  course,  was  well  ac 
quainted  with  the  family,  and  would  be  pleased  to  call 
and  introduce  the  Colonel,  an  act  which  any  respecta 
ble  villager  might  feel  free  to  do,  at  any  seasonable 
hour,  for  rural  communities  are  not  restrained  in  this 
regard  by  any  formal  and  rigid  code. 

With  true  country  cordiality  the  widow  invited 
the  young  men  to  seats  under  a  spreading  maple,  and 
requested  Lilian  to  obtain  a  plate  of  apples  for  their 
refreshment. 

"Lilly,"  she  called  out  as  the  daughter  was  hurry 
ing  away,  "be  sure  and  get  golden  pippins,  for  they  are 
mello\ver  now  than  any  others — and  Lilly,''  the  mother 
continued,  as  a  new  thought  occurred  to  her,  "fetch  a 
bottle  of  cider,  my  dear,  and  then  run  to  the  cupboard 
and  get  a  few  doughnuts.  The  gentlemen  must  be 
hungry  after  their  long  walk." 

"Xot  at  all :  not  in  the  least,  madam ;  don't  put 
yourself  or  your  daughter  to  any  trouble,  I  beg  of 
you,"  said  the  Colonel.  "It  is  a  delightful  walk  from 
the  village  to  your  place,  madam.  Yon  have  the  ad 
vantage  of  both  country  and  town  ;  you  are  admirably 
situated." 

Lilian  soon  re-appeared  bearing  a  basket  from 
which  she  took  apples,  cider  and  a  tray  heaped  with 
twisted  brown  cakes,  and  placed  them  on  a  bench  be 
side  the  visitors. 


84  UNCLE  PETER  SKED 

"I  think  you'll  find  the  cider  very  good,"  said  the 
widow,  as  she  proceeded  to  fill  the  two  glasses  Lilian 
had  been  thoughtful  enough  to  bring,  "I  got  the  recipe 
for  preserving  it  from  Massachusetts.  My  husband 
used  to  say  it  was  the  best  in  the  whole  country.  Help 
yourselves,  gentlemen.  Here,  Mr.  Jones,  you  must  try 
the  cider,  and  Colonel,  I  want  your  opinion  of  it." 

"It  is  excellent,  madam,"  exclaimed  the  Colonel, 
when  he  had  put  it  to  his  lips,  "I  never  tasted  better  in 
my  life.  Rich,  creamy,  and  such  a  splendid  flavor.  I 
rarely  take  champaign,  but  I  certainly  never  partook 
of  any  so  agreeable  to  my  taste  as  this.  Mr.  Jones, 
don't  you  call  it  very  good  ?" 

"I  do/'  replied  Jones ;  "Mrs.  More  is  famous 
throughout  Cranberry  County  for  the  excellence  of  her 
cider.  There  can  be  no  better." 

"Doughnuts  and  cider  go  well  together ;  take  a 
doughnut,  Colonel.  Mr.  Jones  help  yourself,"  said  the 
widow,  "I  know  you  must  be  hungry.  Lilly  is  always 
hungry  as  a  wolf  when  she  walks  home  from  town." 

"I  don't  wonder  in  the  least,"  said  the  Colonel, 

looking  up  at  the  blushing  girl ;  "I  should  be  both  hun- 

.gry  and  thirsty  so  long  as  these  cakes  and  this  cider 

were  within  reach.     I   fear   I  should  be  eating  and 

drinking  all  the  time,  madam." 

Lilian's  cheeks  were  glowing.  Here  was  the  dis 
tinguished  and  handsome  gentleman  who  had  almost 
run  over  her  at  the  bridge ;  who  had  followed  her  to 
church,  who  had  sung  so  delightfully,  who  had  been 
introduced  to  her  by  the  great  Mr.  Travis,  and  who 
was  evidently  the  Prince  for  whose  coming  she  had 
secretly  looked  and  longed.  Her  little  heart  thumped 
wildly,  her  eyelashes  were  drooping,  and  she  trembled 
slightly.  The  thought  came  into  her  young  head  that 


LILIAN  MOKE  85 

doughnuts,  cider  and  rough  country  entertainment 
might  not  be  quite  good  enough  for  his  royal  highness, 
still  she  hoped  from  the  bottom  of  her  heart  he  would 
so  far  condescend  as  to  enjoy  them.  What  might  he 
think  of  her?  What  a  pity  it  was  she  had  not  on  the 
nice  lace  collar  and  lovely  brooch  her  mother  had  given 
her  on  her  seventeenth  birthday,  not  yet  a  month  gone, 
lie  would  surely  think  her  awkward,  and  may  be  her 
hair  was  in  disorder  and  she  looking  like  a  fright;  but 
bow  easy  and  self-possessed  he  was ! 

In  less  than  fifteen  minutes  the  Colonel  was  as 
well  acquainted  with  the  simple-hearted  widow  as  if 
he  had  known  her  always.  In  half  an  hour  he  was  ad 
dressing  the  handsome  daughter  as  Lilian,  and  they 
were  singing  a  hymn  together  much  to  the  delight  of 
the  mother,  and  the  apparent  satisfaction  of  Mr.  Jones. 
In  less  than  an  hour  after  his  arrival  he  had  obtained 
permission  to  escort  the  daughter  to  church  in  the 
evening. 

Ah !  what  an  elegant  and  accomplished  gentleman 
he  was,  and  how  much  superior  to  Jack  Wharton,  who 
would  come  sauntering  down  the  road  on  summer 
afternoons  casting  sheep's  eyes  over  the  fence  at  Lilian, 
but  too  bashful  to  speak  out  plnmply  and  tell  what  he 
meant  by  such  foolishness.  Jack  would  be  dazed  when 
he  saw  her  going  to  church  in  the  gray  of  the  evening 
leaning  confidingly  on  the  arm  of  the  Prince.  But  she 
could  not  help  it ;  Jack  might  be  a  good  fellow  enough 
in  his  way,  but  he  lacked  blood  and  culture.  In  brief, 
he  was  not  a  prince.  He  was  simply  the  over-grown, 
awkward  son  of  a  well  to  do  farmer  who  would  be 
pleased  to  have  the  line  fence  between  the  Wharton 
and  More  farms  abolished  by  the  marriage  of  Jack  and 
Lilian,  so  the  youngsters  might  have  the  run  of  six 


86  UNCLE  PETER  SKED 

hundred  and  forty  acres  together  instead  of  being  re 
stricted  to  three  hundred  and  twenty  each.  But  now 
that  the  Prince  had  come  the  division  fence  was  not 
only  likely  to  be  renewed  many  times  but  to  be  built 
several  rails  higher  than  it  had  ever  been,  and  then 
staked  and  ridered,  so  a  two-year  old  colt  could  not 
touch  the  top  of  it  with  his  nose. 

It  may  seem  incredible  to  some  few  persons  of 
antiquated  ways  and  exclusive  dispositions,  that  the 
Colonel  should  have  succeeded  in  his  purpose  thus  far 
so  easily,  but  it  is  nevertheless  true.  There  are  few  if 
any  guards  thrown  about  young  girls  in  country  and 
village  or  even  city.  Their  own  inclinations  are,  as  a 
rule,  their  only  guide.  Fathers  and  mothers  rarely  stop 
to  scrutinize  closely  a  well  dressed  young  man  who 
comes  to  them  in  fairly  good  company.  If  the  father 
were  buying  a  horse  he  would  be  careful  to  ascertain 
its  pedigree  and  to  know  the  animal  was  neither  vicious 
in  temper  nor  defective  in  limb.  If  the  mother  were 
selecting  cloth  for  a  garment,  she  would  inquire  par 
ticularly  as  to  the  reliability  of  its  color  and  durability 
of  its  fibre ;  but  when  a  young  man  comes  to  bear  the 
daughter  company  in  her  own  home,  or  in  her  walks 
and  drives,  no  care  is  exercised  and  no  advice  given. 
In  the  selection  of  a  husband  she  is  allowed  greater 
freedom  than  would  be  accorded  to  her  in  the  purchase 
of  a  dress,  or  in  the  transaction  of  any  other  business, 
however  trivial  and  unimportant. 


VIII 

'SQUIRE  JABEZ  WHARTON 

LATE  in  the  afternoon  of  this  pleasant  Sabbath,  a 
tall,  awkward  country  bred  youth,  attired  in  his 
Sunday  clothes,  was  standing  on  the  bridge  with 
his  back  against  its  railing,  and  his  head  bowed  in  deep 
meditation.  It  \vas  Jack  Wharton.  He  thought  pos 
sibly  Lilian  would  venture  out  to  the  evening  service 
alone,  and  that  he  might  join  her  at  this  point.  He  had 
known  her  from  childhood  and  at  one  time  felt  easy  and 
unembarrassed  in  her  presence ;  but  within  the  past 
year  or  two  she  had  taken  on  very  quickly  the  appear 
ance  and  manners  of  a  handsome  young  lady,  and  was 
in  fact  so  bewitching,  and  seemed  so  absolutely  per 
fect  that  Jack  was  puzzled  to  account  for  the  sudden 
change,  and  fearful  she  had  grown  altogether  beyond 
his  reach.  He  did  not  dare  to  go  boldly  to  her  mother's 
house,  for  this*  would  have  disclosed  the  bashful  fel 
low's  purpose,  and  might  have  been  met  by  a  rebuff 
humiliating  to  him  and  the  subject  of  amusement  to 
others.  To  avoid  the  dangers  incident  to  a  direct  at 
tack,  he  had  therefore,  concluded  if  possible  to  meet 
Lilian  as  if  by  accident,  and  in  the  conversation  which 
would  naturally  follow,  endeavor  as  cunningly  as  pos 
sible  to  draw7  from  her  in  words  or  hints,  permission 
to  attend  her  to  church,  and  then  escort  her  home. 
While  Jack  was  thinking  the  matter  over  and  watching 
eagerly  for  a  silver  gray  dress  trimmed  with  bright 
ribbons  to  appear  on  the  brow  of  the  hill  to  the  east 

(87) 


88  UNCLE  PETER  SKED 

of  him,  he  heard  the  steps  of  one  coming  from  the  op 
posite  direction,  and  turning  his  head  saw  a  gentleman 
approaching  who  was  evidently  satisfied  with  himself 
and  fairly  content  with  the  world  at  large. 

"Hello,  my  man,"  the  stranger  exclaimed  when 
he  reached  the  bridge,  "I  can  guess  your  thoughts; 
your  face  is  like  an  open  book  to  me." 

"Sir?"  stammered  Jack,  blushing  to  the  roots  of 
his  hair. 

"My  good  fellow,"  continued  the  stranger  as  he 
paused  for  a  moment  to  look  down  on  the  river,  "you 
have  been  reminded  by  the  running  water,  of  the 
stream  of  life  which  never  ceases  in  its  flow.  Now 
creeping  on  amid  mud  and  moss  and  quicksands,  now 
dashing  against  rocks,  now  leaping  over  precipices, 
then  broadening  and  deepening  and  pouring  out  its 
waters  into  the  boundless  and  fathomless  sea.  Such 
reflections  will  do  you  no  harm,  sir.  Good  evening." 

"Good  evening,  sir,"  responded  Jack  respectfully. 

His  eyes  followed  the  stranger  up  the  hill,  and 
when  he  saw  him  enter  Mrs.  More's  gate  he  would 
have  given  a  fine  Durham  calf  to  know  who  the  elo 
quent  gentleman  was,  and  just  why  he  called  at  the 
home  of  Lilian.  Had  a  new  preacher  come  to  town? 
He  talked  very  much  like  a  clergyman ;  his  voice  was 
strong  and  solemn,  and  his  theme  a  sober  one.  Jack 
had  heard  the  stream  of  life  touched  upon  before,  and 
never,  he  thought,  more  impressively.  Had  Mrs.  More 
any  rich  kinfolks  that  might  come  to  visit  her?  Not 
that  Jack  knew  of.  He  had  lived  neighbor  to  the 
Mores  all  his  life  —  for  twenty  years,  in  fact,  and 
never  heard  them  speak  of  rich  relations,  a  matter  peo 
ple  rarely  fail  to  mention  if  they  can  do  so  truthfully. 

While    Jack    was    puzzling    his    brain    over    this 


'SQUIRE  JABEZ  WHARTON  89 

stranger,  and  his  mysterious  mission  to  widow  More's, 
he  saw  him  and  Lilian  descending  the  hill  together, 
and  then  the  young  man's  heart  quaked  and  his  knees 
trembled,  for  he  knew  at  once  the  gentleman  was  from 
some  far  city,  and  had  found  out  how  beautiful  Lilian 
was,  and  had  come  perhaps  a  thousand  miles  to  marry 
her.  Jack  did  not  care  what  personal  misfortunes  be 
fell  hyn  now.  If  the  war  were  not  ended,  he  would  go 
into  the  army  to-morrow,  and  if  possible  get  killed  in 
the  first  battle.  Perhaps  after  he  was  dead  she  would 
think  of  the  boy  with  whom  she  used  to  romp  as  if  she 
were  the  commonest  kind  of  a  girl  and  not  at  all  proud 
and  thoughtful  of  her  looks,  but  —  well,  he  must  get 
away  for  they  were  now  crossing  the  little  stretch  of 
bottom  ground  which  lay  between  the  hill  and  river. 
Going  hastily  to  the  village  end  of  the  bridge  he 
jumped  from  it  to  the  pebbly  margin  below  and  walked 
down  the  stream  until  it  turned  westward  round  a  point 
of  elevated  ground  where  as  he  could  not  be  seen  from 
the  road,  he  threw  himself  on  the  green  sward  to  con 
sider  further  whether  he  might  not  just  as  well  be  dead 
as  alive. 

It  required  a  longer  time  to  discuss  this  question 
than  might  be  supposed  by  those  who  have  never  given 
it  special  attention,  and  before  the  controversy  ended 
the  crimson  faded  from  the  western  sky ;  one  by  one 
the  stars  came  out ;  the  sound  of  the  rippling  water 
became  more  distinct ;  the  scattered  trees  in  the  fields 
and  on  the  river  bank  grew  to  be  shadows.  Then  the 
east  began  to  brighten,  and  the  moon  pushed  a  silvery 
thread  above  the  horizon  which  grew  until  a  burnished 
shield  seemed  to  stand  upright  on  the  land.  Then  as 
full  rounded  it  crept  slowly  up  the  sky,  the  stars  waxed 
dim  around  it ;  a  soft  light  fell  on  the  fields  and  bright- 


90  UNCLE  PETER  SKED 

ened  the  little  river,  and  mingled  with  shadows  of  tree 
and  shrub.  Jack  finally  awoke  to  this  more  cheerful 
change  in  the  scene  around  him,  and  began  to  have 
some  dim  perception  of  the  vastness  of  the  universe, 
and  the  grandeur  and  beauty  of  it,  and  of  the  littleness 
of  himself,  and  the  insignificance  of  his  own  griefs. 
Springing  to  his  feet  he  said,  solemnly,  he  would  be  a 
man  henceforth,  and  not  nurse  his  troubles.  There 
were  as  good  fish  in  the  sea  as  any  that  had  been 
caught,  and  with  this  homely  and  wholesome  maxim 
stirring  in  his  brain,  but  a  heaviness  still  pressing  on 
his  heart,  he  followed  the  winding  river  back  to  the 
bridge,  and  was  about  to  climb  up  into  the  roadway 
when  his  ear  caught  the  sound  of  voices.  Still  not 
wishing  to  be  seen  by  Lilian  and  the  stranger,  and  quite 
sure  the  voices  he  heard  were  theirs,  he  stepped  into 
the  shadow  of  a  stone  abutment  to  remain  until  they 
should  pass  by. 

Lilian's  companion  was  in  no  haste.  Under  the 
mellow  light  of  a  full  moon,  widow  More's  bottom 
land,  sloping  fields  and  cottage,  further  up,  looked  like 
a  paradise,  while  Lilian  herself  was  an  houri,  or  what 
ever  else  it  is  which  men  deem  a  fit  occupant  of  such 
a  place.  He  therefore,  stopped  when  he  reached  the 
center  of  the  bridge  to  enjoy  the  beauty  of  the  moon 
lit  scene,  and  possibly  to  spend  a  half  hour  in  delicious 
communion  with  the  girl  herself  whose  innocence  and 
beauty  had  by  this  time  won  upon  him  almost  as  much 
as  the  broadness  and  value  of  her  mother's  acres,  and 
the  comfort  and  unostentatious  elegance  of  her  house. 

"My  dearest  Lilian  —  '  Jack  heard  the  stranger 
say  in  tender  tones. 

"You   must   not   speak  to   me  any   more  in  that 


'SQUIRE  JABEZ  WHARTON  91 

way,"  said  the  girl  quickly,  with  tremulous  voice ;  "we 
have  known  each  other  but  a  day.  Let  us  walk  on." 

Lilian  was  trembling  with  excitement,  yet  feeling 
greatly  flattered  by  the  Colonel's  avowal  of  his  love. 
There  was,  however,  something  in  his  manner  and 
plainness  of  speech  which  seemed  to  her  unnatural  and 
indelicate,  if  not  wholly  wrong.  The  instincts  of  true 
womanhood  were  strong  within  her,  and  the  tender 
words  which  had  fallen  on  her  ears  so  frequently  to 
night,  though  sincere  enough  perhaps,  were  not  in 
harmony  with  her  notions  of  propriety.  There  might 
be  such  a  thing  as  love  at  first  sight  —  indeed  of  this 
there  could  be  no  question,  but  it  seemed  to  her  this 
love  —  all  love  in  fact  —  was  shy,  silent  and  retiring ; 
feeling  its  way  modestly  with  looks,  half  words,  hints, 
whisperings,  and  inferences,  and  not  obtrusively,  with 
bold  strides  and  high  sounding  sentences.  And  yet  he 
must  be  right  —  certainly  more  likely  to  be  right  than 
an  inexperienced  girl,  for  was  not  he  a  wise  and  hand- 
some  gentleman  who  had,  doubtless,  moved  in  the  best 
society,  and  therefore,  familiar  with  all  its  habits,  and 
observant  of  them? 

"Dearest,"  the  Colonel  replied,  as  he  took  the 
girl's  hand  in  his  own,  "it  is  not  late;  let  us  not  be  in 
haste.  There  never  was  a  more  beautiful  night  than 
this,  and  never  a  lovelier  woman  to  look  upon  it  than 
you.  This  is  one  of  the  precious  and  delightful  mo 
ments  which  come  so  rarely  in  life  we  can  not  afford 
to  turn  our  backs  upon  them.  To  do  so  would  be  shut 
ting  our  eyes  to  the  glories  of  nature  and  flying  from 
the  good  things  created  for  our  enjoyment.  Indeed  it 
would  be  rejecting  the  overflowing  goblet  presented  to 
our  lips  by  heaven  itself.  No,  no,  my  darling,  let  us 


92  UNCLE  PETER  SKED 

not  be  ungrateful.  Let  us  accept  nature's  choicest 
offerings  with  thanks  and  be  happy  while  we  may." 

Her  hands  were  lying  passively  in  his ;  her  heart 
throbbing  as  if  it  would  break  away,  and  her  face 
flushed  to  the  color  of  a  red  rose.  She  tried  to  spe#k, 
then  staggered^forward  as  if  resolved  to  go  on  in  spite 
of  him,  but  some  impulse  drew  her  back  and  looking 
up  into  his  face  she  managed  to  articulate  brokenly : 

"It  is  —  still  a  long  way ;  let  us  go  on." 

"Only  a  step,  my  darling  —  if  it  were  twenty 
miles,  the  distance  would  seem  short.  I  trust  you  have 
not  grown  weary  of  — " 

There  was  a  heavy  footfall  on  the  village  end  of 
the  bridge  now.  The  girl  turned  her  face  hurriedly  in 
that  direction  with  an  expression  of  relief  upon  it.  The 
next  moment  a  rough  voice  called  out : 

"Good  evenin' ;  a  nice  night ;"  and  then  as  the  man 
came  nearer  he  exclaimed  : 

"Hey!    Lilly,  is't  you,  gal?" 

"Colonel  Albright,  'Squire  Jabez  Wharton,"  said 
Lilian  excitedly. 

"Right  glad  to  know  ye,  sir,"  said  the  'Squire 
heartily,  as  he  reached  out  his  big,  hard  right  hand  and 
grasped  the  Colonel's.  "Howdy-do,  sir.  How's  all 
your  folks,  sir?" 

"Well,  quite  well,  thank  you,"  responded  the  Col 
onel  coolly. 

"That's  good ;  nothing  like  health,  sir.  Stranger 
in  these  parts,  I  reckon ;  where'd  ye  come  from,  sir.  if 
I  may  make  so  bold  as  to  ast  ?" 

The  'Squire,  a  tall,  gaunt,  bony  man,  stood  facing 
the  Colonel.  The  girl  had  fallen  back  a  step  and  lean 
ing  against  the  railing  of  the  bridge  was  apparently 
looking  at  some  distant  object  down  the  river. 


93 


"I  have  been  here  but  a  few  days,"  the  Colonel 
said  abstractedly,  endeavoring  to  devise  some  pretext 
for  getting  rid  of  the  'Squire,  who  acted  as  if  he  in 
tended,  in  neighborly  fashion,  to  walk  the  remainder 
of  the  way  to  Mrs.  More's  with  them.  "I  trust  I  shall 
see  you  again,  my  dear  sir,  and  have  an  opportunity 
to  give  you  all  the  details  of  my  personal  history.  At 
this  late  hour  it  would  be  cruel  to  detain  you  from 
your  family  for  such  a  purpose.  I  wish  you  a  pleas 
ant  good  night,  sir." 

The  Colonel  bowed  as  if  he  were  taking  leave  of 
the  'Squire,  but  the  latter  not  profiting  by  the  hint, 
drew  a  plug  of  tobacco  from  his  pocket  and  biting  off 
a  chew,  said : 

"If  ye'r  goin'  on  to  Widder  More's,  I'll  keep  ye 
company.  It!s  on  my  way ;  I  live  at  the  house  be 
yond.  Air  ye  a  sellm'  of  lightning  rods  in  these  parts, 
sir?  The  men  as  sells  'em  air  generally  smart,  dressy 
fellers,  with  a  flowin'  gift  of  gab." 

"No,"'  replied  the  Colonel  stiffly,  but  without  mov 
ing  forward,  "and  if  I  were,  I  should  not  try  to  sell  a 
rod  to  you.'' 

"Well  now,  that's  kinder  funny,"  said  the  'Squire, 
with  a  puzzled  look ;  ''most  of  them  lightnin'  rod 
fellers  strike  me  fust.  An'  ye  would  n't  sell  me  one? 
Why  not,  if  I  may  make  bold  to  ast?" 

The  Colonel  now  a  little  angry  replied,  with  some 
show  of  feeling : 

''My  good  sir,  lightning  will  never  hurt  you.  Your 
head  is  as  invulnerable  as  a  cannon  ball.  You  need 
have  no  fear  of  lightning.  Good-night,  sir." 

:  'Tis   a  good  night,"   said  the   'Squire,   looking 
about  him  observantly,  "mighty  nice.    It's  a  dry  moon, 


94  UNCLE  PETEK  SKED 

Colonel ;  leastwise  it  was  when  new  accordin'  to  the 
Injun  sign,  which  I  reckon  is  as  good  as  any." 

Lilian  possessed  a  thorough  understanding  of 
'Squire  Jabez  Wharton'' s  adhesive  qualities,  and  possi 
bly  was  not  altogether  displeased  with  the  prospect  of 
having  his  company  for  the  remainder  of  the  way. 
The  Colonel  had  advanced  with  astonishing  celerity  to 
a  point  ordinarily  requiring  years  to  reach.  She  feared 
if  again  alone  with  him  under  the  stimulating  influence 
of  the  moonlight,  questions  might  be  asked  which  she 
was  not  at  this  time  fully  prepared  to  answer,  and 
pledges  required  which  she  was  certainly  on  this  night 
not  ready  to  give,  and  so  she  said  as  calmly  as  she 
could : 

"Colonel  Albright,  let  us  w>alk  on  with  'Squire 
Wharton.  I  fear  it  may  be  getting  late.'' 

"Certainly,  certainly.  Miss  More/'  said  the  Col 
onel,  offering  her  his  arm,  "but  I  think  it  is  still  early. 
'Squire  Wharton,  my  honored  sir,  let  us  move  forward. 
You  are  quite  correct  in  affirming  this  is  a  lovely  night. 
1  conclude  from  your  appreciation  of  it  and  your  ap 
pearance,  sir.  that  you  are  of  an  ethereal  and  poetic 
nature,  and  if  called  upon  could  sing  a  sentimental 
song  with  such  sweetness  as  to  make  the  very  dogs 
howl  with  joy." 

"No,  I  don't  sing,"  said  the  'Squire,  as  they 
walked  on  together.  "I  could  a  larnt,  but  it  'peared  to 
me  kind  of  triflin'  business  fer  a  man,  sort  er  wimens' 
work  like,  an'  I  never  tried.  Ye'r  fine  langwidge, 
Colonel,  minds  me  of  a  book  agent  —  air  ye  a  book 
agent,  sir?" 

"No,  I  have  not  yet  attained  to  that  honor.  I  may 
by  great  industry  reach  it  in  time,  but  as  yet  I  am 
pursuing  an  humbler  walk  in  life." 


'SQUIRE  JABEZ  WHARTON  95 

"Well,  as  I  was  'bout  to  say.  This  book  agent 
come  to  my  house  a  year  ago  last  grass,  with  a  uni- 
varsial  history.  He  was  a  pious  chap,  an'  talked  pur- 
ty,  an'  tole  me  how  valerable  the  book  was,  an'  how 
useful  in  a  family,  an'  how  we  ought  to  have  a  uni- 
varsial  history  so  as  whenever  a  furrin  country  was 
spoke  of  we  mought  turn  to  it  an'  see  what  sort  of 
people  lived  there,  an'  what  they'd  done  an'  all  that; 
an'  he  said  as  how  the  book'd  be  valerable  to  Jack 
who  was  growin'  up  into  a  man,  and  mought  be  Presi 
dent  of  these  United  States,  may  be,  if  we'd  give  the 
boy  a  fair  shake;  and  so  fer  Jack's  sake  in  part,  an' 
to  help  a  pious  an'  worthy  book  agent  in  part,  I 
bought  the  book  and  paid  him  fer  it,  an'  put  it  on  the 
sittin'  room  table,  an'  give  the  man  his  dinner.  Well 
now  ye'll  be  surprised  to  know  that  that  air  chap  was 
a  blamed  fraud  —  a  doggoned  cheat.  The  next  year 
—  not  morn  a  month  ago,  he  come  round  agin,  drat 
him !  sellin'  of  a  book  'titled  the  Treasury  of  Historical 
Facts,  an'  as  he  was  sort  of  a  ole  acquaintance,  an' 
as  I'd  got  in  the  way  of  buyin'  books,  havin'  bought 
one  already,  an'  as  he  seemed  to  be  a  likely  sort  of  a 
man  an'  ast  a  blessin'  at  dinner,  an'  talked  about  the 
power  of  knowledge,  an'  how  much  more  valerable  it 
was  than  money,  an'  how  boys  had  got  to  be  rich  an' 
famous  by  knowin'  things,  why  I  up  an'  bought  the 
Treasury  of  Historical  Facts,  an'  paid  him  fer  it,  an' 
laid  it  on  the  sittin'  room  table  side  of  the  Univarsial 
History,  an'  I'll  be  blowed  if  when  Jack  come  home  an' 
looked  at  the  new  book  he  didn't  laugh  fit  to  kill  him 
self.  Thinkin'  that  Jack  was  tickled  because  I  bought 
him  a  new  book,  an'  feelin'  purty  good  myself  over 
doin'  a  good  thing  fer  Jack,  I  says,  says  I,  'Jack,  what 
air  ye  laughing  at,  my  boy?'  An'  says  he,  'Because 


96  UNCLE  PETER  SKED 

you've  been  ail-firedly  took  in  father,'  says  he ;  and 
says  I,  growin'  purty  hot,  'What's  yer  meanin?'  says 
I.  An'  says  he,  'the  old  book  an'  the  new  one  is  just 
the  same,'  says  he,  'ceptin'  the  title  page,'  says  he,  'The 
Univarsal  History  and  the  Treasury  of  Historical 
Facts  is  the  same  book,'  says  Jack ;  an'  then  I  says  to 
Jack,  says  I,  'that  air  book  agent  must  be  a  durned, 
doggoned  fraud,'  says  I.  Well,  sir,  yer  flowery  lang- 
widge  an'  perlite  ways  made  me  think  of  him.  an'  I 
didn't  know  at  fust  but  ye  was  the  same  individgel.'' 

"  'Squire  \Vharton,  you  are  a  flatterer.  If  I  were 
in  the  least  vain  you  would  spoil  me ;  but  I  am  not. 
Accept  my  thanks  for  this  interesting  incident  of  your 
personal  history,  and  be  assured,  sir,  that  I  am  proud 
10  know  a  gentleman  who  has  thus  laid  the  founda 
tion  of  an  extensive  and  valuable  library." 

"I'll  never  buy  a  nuther  book,  never,"  said  the 
'Squire  emphatically.  "But  speaking  of  the  book  man 
makes  me  think  of  a  nuther  durned  rascal  what  come 
tei  my  house  not  more'n  two  months  ago  an'  wanted 
me  to  sarve  as  gineral  agent  fer  a  patent  hoss  rake. 
The  rake,  'cordin'  to  his  tell  \vould  a  most  go  itself 
into  the  field,  rake  up  the  hay  and'  carry  it  to  the 
stack.  All  't  needed  was  a  hoss  an'  a  small  boy  to  go 
'long  of  it  to  see  the  work  was  done  punctual  an' 
regular.  There  was  five  dollars  clean  profit  in  a  sellin' 
of  each  rake ;  an'  the  man  calkerlated  that  at  a  low 
calkerlation  I  could  sell  fifty  if  I  was  right  lively  at 
the  business,  which  he  knowed  by  my  gineral  reputa 
tion  I  would  be.  Well,  the  clean  profit  on  fifty  at  a 
gain  of  five  dollars  a  piece  would  be  two  hundred  an' 
fifty  dollars  you  see,  an'  I  knowed  sich  a  rake  'ud 
go  off  like  hot  cakes  of  a  cold  mornin',  an'  as  I  hadn't 
to  pay  fer  'em  till  they  was  sold  an'  the  money  cur- 


'SQUIRE  JABEZ  WHARTON  97 

lected,  I  took  the  gineral  agency,  an'  signed  an  order 
on  the  head  shop  where  the  rakes  was  made.  Now 
what  d'ye  think  ?  Guess  if  you  can  what  sort  of  a  dog- 
goned  trick  that  air  blasted  slick  tongued  chap  played 
onto  me." 

"My  dear  'Squire,  I  cannot.  The  very  sugges 
tion  that  there  was  a  trick  in  a  transaction  so  open 
and  apparently  fair  has  paralyzed  my  intellect;  but  if 
in  my  enfeebled  condition  I  were  compelled  to 
answer  your  very  pertinent  inquiry,  I  should  say 
the  fifty  hoss  rakes  came  marching  up  to  your  resi 
dence  in  platoons,  headed  by  a  drum  major  and  a  brass 
band,  and  you  welcomed  them  with  a  speech,  and 
tapped  a  barrel  of  apple  jack  in  honor  of  their  arrival, 
and  then  they  all  became  exceedingly  merry,  and  began 
to  kick  around  over  the  pasture  fields  and  rake  in  the 
horses,  cows  and  sheep.  Have  I  hit  the  mark?" 

"Not  by  a  long  shot !"  replied  the  'Squire,  em 
phatically  ;  "that  doggoned  chap  by  some  hocus  pocus 
changed  the  order  fer  fifty  hoss  rakes  into  a  note  fer 
five  hundred  dollars,  an'  then  sold  the  note,  an'  that  air 
note  is  over  to  the  Cranberry  Bank  for  curlection,  but 
I  won't  pay  it.  They're  a  passel  of  cheats.  I'll  see 
the  hull  caboodle  of  'em  —  bank  an'  all,  in  Halifax 
fust." 

'  'Squire,  'Squire,  this  is  strong  language  for  a 
Sabbath  night." 

"Ast  ye'r  pardon,  but  it  was  a  durnation  swindle. 
I  only  agreed  to  sarve  as  gineral  agent  for  the  hoss 
rakes " 

"You  would  have  made  them  an  able  representa 
tive,  'Squire.  They  would  have  had  good  reason  to 
be  proud  of  you,  my  worthy  sir." 


98  UNCLE  PETER  SKED 

"D'ye  think  they  can  hold  me  on  that  air  note  ?" 

"The  hoss  rakes?" 

"No.  them  bank  folks." 

"If  they  felt  as  I  do,  sir,  they  would  let  you  go  — 
they  would  certainly  not  seek  to  hold  \<  u  for  an  in 
stant ;  they  would  say,  go  my  friend  in  peace." 

"Well.  I  b'lieve  they'll  have  to  when  they  know 
the  facts.  But  atween  book  agents,  and  lightnin'  rod 
men,  and  sewin'  machine  peddlers,  and  sellers  of  hoss 
rakes,  and  Hebrew  Jews  with  packs,  an'  root  and  yarb 
doctors,  there's  no  more  livin'  in  this  world  writh  any 
satisfaction.  It  wasn't  so  when  I  was  a  boy ;  people 
was  honest  then.  Ye  never  heard  of  swindlin'  in 
them  times.  Ye  didn't  have  to  lock  yer  houses  an' 
barns  and'  cribs.  But  it  ain't  so  any  more.  The  hull 
country  is  full  of  scamps.  It  was  only  yesterday  week 
that  a  durnation,  slick-tongued  yarb  doctor  come  to  my 
house  when  I  was  ter  work  in  the  pertater  patch,  an' 
made  Xancy  Ann,  my  wife,  b'lieve  a  common  bile 
which  she  had  on  to  the  back  of  her  neck  was  a  can 
cer  an'  she  paid  him  four  dollars  fer  medicine  to  draw 
it  out  by  the  roots.  What's  the  durned  country  a 
comin'  to  any  how?  Ye  can't  tell  who  to  trust;  the 
slickest  and  piousest  fellers  air  the  biggest  scamps. 
Xow. there  was  that  air  doggoned  Hebrew  Jew,  from 
Jerusalem  — " 

They  had  by  this  time  reached  the  brow  of  the  hill, 
and  as  the  Colonel  and  Lilian  were  about  to  turn 
from  the  road  to  enter  Mrs.  More's  gate,  the  former, 
stopping,  shook  hands  cordially  with  'Squire  Whar- 
ton.  expressed  the  pleasure  he  felt  at  having  made  his 
acquaintance,  and  bade  him  good-bye. 

But  the  'Squire  was  in  no  haste :  he  had  not  yet 
fairly  begun  the  story  about  the  Hebrew  Jew  from 


'SQUIKE  JABEZ  WHARTON  99 

Jerusalem,  and  while  he  undoubtedly  appreciated  the 
self-denying  spirit  of  the  Colonel  which  could  consent 
cheerfully  to  relinquish  a  great  pleasure  rather  than 
weary  a  friend  at  this  late  hour  of  the  evening,  he 
did  not  propose  to  take  advantage  of  it.  And  so  walk 
ing  with  him  to  the  gate,  he  said : 

"Go  into  the  house,  Lilly;  the  night  air,  if  ye 
stand  in  it  is  cold'  an'  mought  give  ye  a  cough,  gal.  I 
want  to  tell  the  gentleman  how  that  doggoned  Hebrew 
Jew  from  Jerusalem " 

Lilian  had  not  only  heard  the  story  many  times, 
but  she  was  quite  sure  from  her  knowledge  of  the 
'Squire's  staying  qualities  that  he  would  not  leave  so 
long  as  the  Colonel  remained ;  she  therefore,  gladly 
enough  perhaps,  turned  to  the  latter,  gave  him  her 
hand  for  an  instant,  bade  him  good-night,  and  hurried 
into  the  house. 

"This  Hebrew  Jew,  as  I  was  goin'  to  tell  ye 
'bout,"  said  the  'Squire,  deliberately,  as  he  leaned 
against  the  fence  and  took  a  fresh  chew  of  tobacco, 
"this  here  durned  Hebrew  Jew — 

"Damn  the  Hebrew  Jew,"  exclaimed  the  Colonel, 
angrily,  as  the  door  closed  behind  Lilian.  "Sir,  do  you 
know  —  have  you  the  slightest  conception  of  what  a 
bore  is?" 

"I  hev  the  finest  boar  in  Cranberry  County,  sir," 
returned  the  'Squire  proudly,  "a  full  blood  Chester 
white ;  air  ye  interested  in  fine  hogs  ?" 

"No  —  damn  fine  hogs  —  all  hogs  ;  they  annoy 
me." 

"The  Chesters  air  gentle,  but  some  breeds  air 
cross.  Now  there's  Neighbor  Jones'  black — 

'"Squire  Wharton,  in  bidding  you  a  friendly 
good-night,  allow  me  to  congratulate  you,  sir,  on 


100  UNCLE  PETER  SKED 

being  a  gentleman  of  greater  boring  capacity  than 
any  other  man  it  has  ever  been  my  good  fortune  to 
meet.  Your  powers  of  adhesion  and  penetration  are 
simply  marvelous.  You  should  have  been  a  pump- 
maker,  sir;  you  carry  an  adjustable  augur  which  may 
be  used  to  drive  a  hole  of  any  size  and  length  desired. 
Did  you  ever  try  your  hand  at  pump-making,  sir?" 

''No,  but  I've  often  thought  I  could  hev  found 
a  easier  business  than  farming;  somethin'  that  'ud  a 
took  less  hard  liftin'  an'  more  head  work ;  but  as  I  was 
'bout  tellin'  of  ye  when  ye  ast,  'bout  the  hogs,  that  air 
Hebrew  Jew  from  Jerusalem  — 

"May  go  to  Jericho,"  said  the  Colonel,  turning  on 
his  heel  and  walking  rapidly  away. 

The  'Squire  with  his  back  against  the  fence  and 
his  hands  in  his  pockets,  stood  watching  the  Colonel's 
lessening  figure  until  it  reached  the  bottom  of  the 
hill ;  then  with  a  feeling  of  surprise  that  any  sensible 
man  should  voluntarily  turn  away  from  so  interesting 
a  story  as  he  had  to  tell  about  the  Jew,  he  started  for 
his  own  home. 


IX 


BEN  HOOD 

IT  was  now  the  middle  of  September.  The  election 
would  occur  on  the  second  Tuesday  of  October ; 
there  was  less  than  a  month  left  in  which  to  make 
preparation  for  the  final  struggle  at  the  polK  Travis 
and  Popper  were  exceedingly  busy  and  their  respec 
tive  committees  no  less  active.  Political  documents 
were  being  distributed  freely.  Men  were  going  from 
house  to  house  to  ascertain  the  names  of  voters  and 
their  party  preferences.  Lists  of  the  doubtful  and 
undecided  were  being  prepared  with  a  view  to  bring 
ing  proper  or  improper  influences  to  bear  on  them. 
Mass  meetings  were  held  at  the  county  seats,  and 
young  lawyers  who  had  few  opportunities  to  display 
their  eloquence  in  the  line  of  their  profession  were 
driving  to  remote  townships  with  the  hope  of  winning 
fame  for  themselves  and  votes  for  their  candidates,  by 
addressing  little  audiences  in  school-houses. 

The  most  active  man,  apparently,  at  this  stage  of 
the  canvass,  was  our  esteemed  fellow  citizen,  Deacon 
Ebenezer  Gum.  He  and  his  sleek,  mouse-colored 
mare  were  on  the  road  almost  constantly.  The  gen 
eral  public  believed  he  was  industriously  engaged  in 
getting  the  moral  and  religious  element  in  battle  array 
with  a  view7  to  making  a  tremendous  assault  upon  the 
strongholds  of  the  ungodly.  Mr.  Travis  thought  he 
was  endeavoring  to  convince  the  Prohibitionists  that 
inasmuch  as  there  was  no  possibility  of  electing  a  man 

(101) 


102  UNCLE  PETER  SKED 

of  their  own  selection,  it  would  be  well  to  cast  their 
ballots  for  the  Democratic  candidate.  Air.  Popper,  on 
the  other  hand,  had  confidential  assurances  that  the 
reformers  were  pleased  with  his  sober  habits,  and 
temperate  inclinations,  and  would  give  him  their 
hearty  support.  Deacon  Gum's  mouse-colored  mare 
knew  as  much  with  respect  to  the  acts  and  intentions 
of  her  master  as  either  Travis,  Popper,  or  the  public. 
Ebenezer  did  not  care  a  copper  farthing  how  the  elec 
tion  resulted.  It  was  his  business  to  play  between  the 
two  candidates  and  if  possible  satisfy  both.  In  doing 
this,  however,  he  must  not  neglect  to  cultivate  the 
members  of  his  own  party,  and  obtain  dinners,  horse 
feeds,  and  lodgings  without  cost.  In  order  to  sub 
serve  the  important  ends  suggested,  the  Deacon  took 
frequent  counsel  with  brothers  and  sisters  in  respect 
to  the  wickedness  of  the  world  and  the  measures  re 
quisite  for  its  speedy  regeneration. 

To-day  he  was  on  the  war-path,  and  the  tail  of 
his  sleek  mare  was  turned  toward  Cranberry  town. 
After  riding  for  an  hour  or  two  at  a  good  round  trot, 
he  entered  a  forest  whose  overshadowing  lines  stretch 
ed  for  some  distance  along  the  road.  It  may  be  the 
Deacon  suspected  his  foes  had  prepared  an  ambus 
cade  for  him  in  this  secluded  spot,  and  it  may  be  he 
thought  there  were  wild  beasts  in  the  wood  of  which 
a  prudent  man  should  be  wary ;  but  as  to  the  opera 
tions  of  his  mind  and  the  motives  controlling  his  ac 
tion  on  this  occasion  we  can  only  indulge  in  vague  and 
unprofitable  speculation.  What  he  did  outwardly  and 
in  the  flesh,  however,  may  be  recorded  with  the  utmost 
accuracy.  He  brought  the  mare  to  a  full  stop,  then 
turned  as  a  vigilant  sentinel  might  do  in  an  enemy's 
country  to  see  that  nobody  was  following  him.  Ascer- 


BEN  HOOD  103 

taining  thus  that  he  was  alone  and  unobserved,  his 
right  hand  unconsciously  sought  an  inside  pocket, 
drew  therefrom  a  flat  bottle  and  applied  it  to  his  lips. 
For  the  space  of  a  minute  there  was  a  gurgling  sound 
such  as  might  emanate  from  the  human  throat  when 
being  thoroughly  irrigated.  This  strange  maneuvre 
fully  completed,  and  the  flask  carefully  replaced  in  the 
recesses  of  the  under  garment,  Ebenezer  seemed  to 
adopt  a  more  cheerful  view  of  life,  and  to  be  ready 
for  any  stratagem  or  secret  and  damnable  plot  which 
his  adversaries  might  have  prepared  for  his  reception. 
Indeed  so  reckless  of  his  own  personal  safety  did  he 
become,  that  he  abandoned  all  thought  of  precaution 
ary  measures,  urged  his  mare  to  a  gallop ;  and,  boldly 
lifting  up  his  voice,  sang  a  negro  melody  which  he  had 
learned  in  the  days  of  his  youth  when  he  was  an  ap 
prentice  at  the  bench  of  the  village  shoemaker,  and  still* 
wedded  to  the  beggarly  elements  of  the  world. 

After  passing  the  strip  of  woodland,  he  entered 
upon  a  broad  area  of  open  rolling  country,  having  well 
cultivated  fields  and  all  the  indications  of  an  old  set 
tlement  and  a  thrifty  people.  Here,  abandoning  the 
uegro  melody,  he  relapsed  into  silence  and  possibly  be 
came  absorbed  in  serious  meditation,  for  he  assumed 
immediately  that  more  orderly  and  dignified  bearing 
which  to  the  popular  mind  is  indicative  of  personal 
sanctity. 

The  sun  had  by  this  time  reached  the  meridian, 
and  as  the  Deacon  was  approaching  and  passing  farm 
houses,  he  looked  about  him  sharply  as  if  in  quest  of 
something  or  somebody  he  was  eager  to  find.  Pretty 
soon  he  saw  a  farmer  just  ahead  of  him  near  a  com 
fortable  residence,  with  two  horses  in  his  charge  which 
were  drinking  at  a  stone  trough  by  the  road  side.  In- 


104  UNCLE  PETER  SKED 

creasing  the  speed  of  the  mare  somewhat,  in  order  to 
reach  the  place  before  the  farmer  should  leave  it,  the 
Deacon,  when  quite  near,  called  out  in  the  cordial 
tones  of  an  intimate  friend : 

"Good  morning,  Carter.    How  are  you?" 

"Tolerable  well,"  the  young  farmer  replied,  look 
ing  up  as  if  surprised  by  the  salutation  and  interro 
gatory.  "You  hev  the  advantage  of  me,  sir." 

"Gum  —  Deacon  Ebenezer  Gum,  of  Cranberry." 

"O  yes,  I've  heerd  tell  of  you;  how's  all  yer 
folks.  Deacon?" 

"Well,  right  well,  thank  you.  Anything  new  or 
strange  in  the  neighborhood?" 

"Nothin'  partic'lar;  'bout  the  same  ole  story. 
What's  going  on  in  Cranberry,  Deacon  ?  You  folks  as 
live  in  town  an'  near  the  telegraph  oughter  know  most 
everything." 

"Everybody  is  thinking  about  the  election,"  re 
plied  Gum,  throwing  the  bridle  rein  on  the  mare's  neck 
so  she  could  get  her  nose  to  the  water  trough.  "It's 
getting  pretty  hot.  Travis  is  going  night  and  day, 
and  Popper  is  close  on  his  heels  —  maybe  he's  ahead ; 
nobody  can  tell  exactly,  for  it's  a  tight  race,  nip  and 
tuck,  I  think ;  but  if  I  had  my  way,  Carter,  I'd  beat 
them  both.  The  old  parties  are  getting  too  corrupt  — 
no  honesty  in  them,  not  a  bit.  They're  a  godless  set, 
and  haven't  a  principle  to  brag  about.  Carter,  as  sure 
as  you  live  —  not  one." 

"  'Cordin'  to  your  say  they  hevn't,  Deacon,"  re 
plied  the  young  man  firmly,  "but  no  man  can  hev  all 
the  say  in  this  country,  an'  I  think  my  party's  a  purty 
good  one ;  leastwise  I'm  goin'  to  stand  up  for  it  all 
the  time.  My  dad  an'  ole  grandad  an'  the  Carter 
fambly  hev  allers  been  great  for  Gineral  Jackson,  an' 


BEN  HOOD  105 

we  ain't  goin'  back  on  his  principles  now.  We  don't 
turn  our  coats  like  some  folks.  We're  stickers,  sir, 
that's  what  the  Carters  is  —  stickers.  I've  hearn  tell 
how  ole  grandad  uster  say  he'd  stick  to  Gineral  Jack 
son  an'  his  principles  ontil  there  wasn't  nary  button 
onto  his  coat,  an'  I'm  a  chip  of  the  old  block,  Deacon. 
We're  stickers  and  allers  vote  the  straight  ticket,  rain 
or  shine." 

"Well,  I  must  confess,"  the  Deacon  said  softly  as 
he  threw  his  left  leg  over  the  neck  of  the  mare,  "I 
admire  your  spunk,  Carter,  and  your  consistency.  The 
Carters  were  always  spunky  and  consistent.  No  man 
could  ever  budge  them  an  inch.  When  they  put  a  foot 
down,  there  it  staid.  You  always  knew  exactly  where 
to  find  them  —  always.  If  they  said  they'd  vote  for  a 
man  a  hurricane  couldn't  keep  them  away  from  the 
polls.  I  like  that  sort  of  metal  in  men.  It's  the  true 
grit.  They  may  get  wrong  now  and  then,  but  they're 
always  honest,  consistent,  reliable,  and  generally  right'. 
I  knew  your  father,  'Squire  Jonas  Carter,  very  well. 
He  was  a  sensible,  clever  man  —  mighty  hospitable 
and  clever — 

"That  he  was  —  that  he  was,  Deacon,"  broke  in 
the  farmer,  "there  was  no  better  man  in  this  here  sec 
tion  than  dad,  if  I  do  say  it  myself." 

"Not  one,  sir — not  one  better  in  all  Cranberry 
county,  than  'Squire  Jonas  Carter.  I  have  taken  many 
a  good  dinner  in  his  house  —  in  the  old  house  which 
stood  where  that  one  does.  We  didn't  agree  in  poli 
tics,  but  were  always  the  best  of  friends.  Politics  's 
one  thing,  friendship's  another.  I  never  mix  them ; 
'Squire  Carter  didn't.  Many's  the  time  when  as  I 
came  riding  by  on  my  way  to  Rudd's  Corners  the 
'Squire  would  call  out  in  his  frank  cordial  way,  'Hey, 


106  UNCLE  PETER  SKED 

Gum,  are  you  going  by  without  stopping  to  swap  lies 
with  a  fellow?'  and  then  I'd  have  to  get  off,  put  my 
horse  in  the  stable,  and  stay  to  dinner.  That's  the  kind 
of  man  your  sainted  father  was,  Carter.  I  always 
feel  like  shedding  tears  when  I  think  of  his  hospitable 
ways,  and  remember  that  he's  gone.  I  know  it's  weak 
and  foolish,  but  I  can't  help  it;  we  was  such  inti 
mate  friends,  and  Ah !  he's  gone  to  that  bourne,  as  the 
Psalmist  says " 

"Deacon,  git  right  off  en  the  mare  and  let  me  lead 
her  to  the  stable.  It's  about  dinner  time;  I  just  come 
in  from  ploughin'  a  field  of  oat  stubble  to  git  dinner 
myself.  Here,  I'll  take  the  mare;  you  push  along 
into  the  house  an'  make  yerself  to  home.  We  don't 
put  on  no  style  to  our  house,  neither  do  we  put  on  any 
mortgages  —  that's  one  of  dad's  savin's,  but  we  allers 
hev  enough  to  eat,  sich  as  it  is,  an'  our  friends  is 
welcome." 

"I  didn't  think  of  stopping  to  dinner,"  protested 
the  Deacon,  as  he  dismounted,  "I  expected  to  reach  the 
corners  — " 

"You  go  right  to  the  house,  Deacon,  I'll  'tend  to 
the  mare  long  of  my  horses." 

Carter  put  the  rein  of  the  mare's  bridle  over  his 
arm,  and  started  with  the  three  horses  to  the  barn. 
Then  as  a  new  thought  occurred  to  him,  he  called  back  : 

"Corn  or  oats,  Deacon?" 

"Six  quarts'  of  oats." 

The  dinner  to  which  the  wife  of  an  American 
farmer  invites  her  guests,  whether  their  presence  be 
premeditated  or  accidental,  is  with  respect  to  the  num 
ber  and  character  of  the  dishes  one  of  the  marvels  of 
the  age.  Certainly  no  table  in  any  other  section  of  the 
world  presents  in  abundance  such  an  endless  variety 


BEN  HOOD  107 

of  edibles,  and  probably  few  hard  working  statesmen 
ever  sat  down  to  a  good  dinner  with  less  reluctance 
than  Brother  Gum,  or  ate  with  a  greater  desire  to  do 
justice  to  the  hospitality  of  the  host. 

The  young  wife  with  her  cheeks  flushed  at  the 
kitchen  fire,  and  the  young  husband  with  his  face  all 
aglow  with  the  sunshine  of  the  fields,  felt  that  the  Dea 
con's  brief  but  solemn  blessing  at  the  beginning  of  the 
meal  in  some  way  purified  and  enriched  their  home, 
by  bringing  it  in  direct  communication  with  the  good 
Father  of  all  to  whom  they  were  so  much  indebted  and 
perhaps  ungrateful.  Good  words,  let  them  come  whence 
they  may,  sink  deep  into  soft,  honest  hearts,  suggest 
ing  nobler  thoughts,  strengthening  good  resolutions, 
and  encouraging  men  to  live  better  lives.  The  thief's 
money  in  the  hands  of  one  who  believes  it  was  come 
by  honestly,  is  as  good  as  any ;  so  of  the  hypocrite's 
prayers  and  blessings,  they  are  to  the  innocent,  trust 
ing,  reverential  hearer,  pure  gold  with  the  impress  of 
God  upon  them. 

After  the  dinner  was  over  the  young  mother  took 
her  first  born  from  the  cradle  where  it  had  been  sleep 
ing,  and  held  it  up  proudly  for  the  Deacon's  admira 
tion. 

"Is  it  going  to  be  a  voter?"  he  asked,  chucking 
the  babe  under  the  fat,  dimpled  chin? 

"Oh,  yes,  yes,"  she  answered  with  a  laugh. 

"He's  goin'  to  vote  the  ole  ticket,  Deacon,"  said 
the  father,  stretching  out  his  arms  to  take  the  babe ; 
"he's  a  sticker,  an'll  vote  straight ;  there'll  be  no  non 
sense  about  this  chap  ;  not  any  !" 

"Hope  he'll  be  for  temperance,  Carter,  and  vote 
the  Prohibition  ticket,  and  against  the  rum  sellers.  It 


108  UNCLE  PETER  SKED 

would  be  a  pity  to  have  so  fine  a  boy  go  wrong;  it 
would  indeed." 

"Yes,  he  must  be  temperate  —  he  will  be,1'  said  the 
mother,  quickly,  as  if  alarmed  by  the  Deacon's  sug 
gestion. 

"He'll  be  all  right, '  said  the  father,  trotting  the 
,  boy  gently  on  his  knee ;  "if  he  don't  drink  no  more  nor 
his  clad  and  grandad.  Whiskey  never  hurt  our  fam- 
bly,  Deacon.  It's  the  idle,  shiftless  fellers  as  gits  hurt 
by  whiskey,  an'  they're  bound  to  git  hurt  some  how. 
Dad  uster  say  there  was  more  roads  nor  one  to  go  to 
the  bad,  and  if  you  fence  one  on  em  up  they'll  take  a 
nuther.  A  jumpin'  hoss  don't  stay  in  the  field  because 
one  gap  is  shet ;  he's  bound  to  git  out  any  how7,  an'  the 
higher  you  build  the  fence  the  higher  he'll  jump.  It's 
in  the  critter.  Deacon." 

"But  if  there  wras  no  temptation  on  the  outside  the 
horse  wouldn't  jump  ;  abolish  the  temptation,  Carter, — 
shut  up  the  rum  shops.  The  Lord  said  lead  us  not 
into  temptation,  but  deliver  us  from  evil.  He  was 
wiser  than  man." 

This  silenced  Carter.  He  took  it  for  granted  the 
Lord  meant  precisely  what  Deacon  Gufh  meant ;  and 
although  not  a  professing  Christian  he  nevertheless 
believed  in  the  Lord  and  the  truths  of  the  Bible,  and 
would  not  argue  against  what  Deacon  Gum  seemed  to 
think  was  the  Divine  will ;  and  yet  it  still  appeared  to 
him  that  the  fault  was  in  the  critter  —  that  the  critter 
did  not  stop  to  consider  before  jumping  whether  the 
grass  was  long  or  short  on  the  outside,  but  jumped  to 
gratify  a  spirit  of  restlessness,  the  outgrowth  possibly 
of  early  indulgence,  bad  example,  lack  of  discipline,  or 
an  innate  tendency  to  evil. 

Bidding  the  Carters  good-day.  Deacon  Gum  re- 


BEN  HOOD  109 

sumed  his  journey,  and  had  trotted  along  for  an  hour 
or  more  on  his  way  to  Rudd's  corners,  when  the  light 
clouds  of  the  morning  grew  suddenly  dark,  and  threat 
ened  to  let  down  a  plentiful  shower.  Soon  large  drops 
falling  here  and  there  on  the  dusty  road,  admonished 
him  that  if  he  would  escape  a  thorough  drenching,  he 
must  seek  shelter  in  the  first  house  he  came  to.  Urg 
ing  the  mare  now  to  a  gallop  he  went  dashing  along  in 
fine  style  until  he  reached  a  private  avenue  leading  up 
a  gentle  slope  between  two  rows  of  maples  to  an  old- 
fashioned  but  substantial  farm  house.  Wheeling  to 
the  right  he  gave  the  mare  another  stroke  of  the  whip 
to  remind  her  there  was  no  time  to  lose,  and  she  fairly 
flew  up  the  lane,  past  the  house,  and  to  the  cattle  sheds 
which  adjoined  the  barns  and  stables  in  the  rear.  It 
was  a  narrow  escape.  Before  the  Deacon  had  time  to 
dismount  the  rain  fell  in  torrents  and  the  noise  of  it 
on  the  roofs  about  him  was  like  the  roar  of  the  sea. 

The  Deacon  would  not,  under  ordinary  circum 
stances,  have  sought  shelter  here.  The  man  who 
owned  the  place,  though  hospitable  always,  and  gentle 
enough  at  times,  frequently  made  himself  exceedingly 
disagreeable  in  the  discussion  of  political  subjects.  He 
was  known  throughout  Cranberry  County,  and  even 
beyond  its  boundaries  as  an  off  ox,  who  took  delight 
in  pulling  against  the  team.  This  was  especially  true 
of  him  in  periods  of  great  political  excitement ;  he  then 
lost  apparently  all  discretion  and  gave  expression  to 
sentiments  which  the  great  majority  of  his  neighbors 
heartily  condemned.  He  was  at  this  very  time  impru 
dent  enough  to  affirm  that  Travis,  the  Democratic 
leader,  was  a  scoundrel ;  Popper,  the  Republican  candi 
date,  a  cowardly  trimmer ;  Gum,  the  leader  of  the  Pro 
hibitionists,  a  shallow  hypocrite,  and  John  Rudd,  the 


110  UNCLE  PETEK  SKED 

local  champion  of  the  Greenbackers,  a  common  thief 
who  sought  to  pay  his  debts  in  rags. 

Forty  years  ago  when  Ben  Hood,  the  father,  was 
alive,  the  large  brick  with  its  porches  and  leantos, 
where  Ben  Hood,  the  son  now  lived,  and  in  whose 
ample  cattle  shed  Deacon  Gum  found  shelter,  was 
known  far  and  wide  as  a  station  of  the  under  ground 
railroad.  Just  how  many  fleeing  fugitives  had  been 
secretly  harbored  in  the  cellars,  garrets  and  closets  of 
the  old  house  nobody  now  living  knew  exactly.  But 
many  and  many  a  man  of  Cranberry  County  had  heard 
his  father  denounce  Ben  Hood  the  elder,  for  sheltering 
runaway  negroes,  and  helping  them  on  their  way  to 
Canada.  Indeed,  there  had  been  in  the  old  time  myste 
rious  covered  wagons  going  up  the  lane  and  coming 
out  of  it,  at  all  hours  of  the  night  and  in  all  kinds  of 
weather.  It  was  even  said  that  the  elder  Hood  kept 
a  posse  of  slave  hunters,  who  pounced  down  upon  his 
house  after  midnight,  at  bay  for  two  solid  hours,  and 
when  the  fight  was  over  and  a  half  dozen  heads 
bruised,  justified  his  action  by  the  pretense  that  he  mis 
took  them  for  robbers.  After  they  had  ransacked*  the 
premises  and  found  nothing,  he  invited  them  to  the 
dining  room,  gave  them  a  royal  lunch,  and  laughed 
and  joked  as  if  he  regarded  their  coming  as  a  great 
compliment  to  his  personal  worth.  Before  he  would 
let  them  go,  he  even  ordered  in  a  big  bellied  brown  jug, 
bade  them  help  themselves,  and,  with  the  crown  of  his 
head  six  feet  four  inches  above  the  soles  of  his  boots, 
he  lifted  his  glass  still  higher,  and  cried : 

"Here's  good  luck  and  long  life  to  the  poor  devil 
you're  after." 

By  this  time  it  was  three  o'clock  in  the  morning, 
and  Ben  Hood,  the  son,  a  lively  boy  of  his  age. 


BEN  HOOD  111 

mounted  on  a  stout  horse,  with  a  negro  behind  him, 
was  twenty  miles  further  north  than  he  had  been  three 
hours  before  when  the  slave  hunters  began  to  rattle  at 
his  father's  door. 

The  present  Ben  Hood,  nearly  six  feet  five  inches 
in  height,  broad  shouldered  and  full  chested,  was  a 
chip  of  the  old  block,  or  rather  a  duplication  of  it.  He 
had  been  among  the  first  to  enlist  as  a  private  soldier 
in  '6 1  ;  had  gone  through  Bull  Run  and  several  of  the 
earlier  battles  of  the  war  without  a  scratch;  but  sub 
sequently,  losing  an  arm  at  Gettysburg,  he  was  con 
sidered  unfit  for  further  service  and  sent  home.  So 
long  as  the  war  continued  he  was  enthusiastic  in  sup 
port  of  it,  and  during  this  time  enjoyed  some  degree 
of  popular  favor.  But  after  the  war  closed  and  slavery 
was  abolished,  he  gradually  lost  all  interest  in  existing 
parties,  and  finally  absented  himself  from  the  polls  en 
tirely,  assigning  as  a  reason  therefor  that  elections  pre 
sented  nothing  but  an  opportunity  to  choose  between 
evils. 

To  Deacon  Gum,  who  knew  Hood  well,  his  habit 
of  direct  and  emphatic  speech  was  particularly  annoy 
ing;  and  yet  he  thought  it  better  to  run  the  risk  of 
being  subjected  to  it,  than  to  receive  a  thorough  wet 
ting.  When  he  shot  past  the  house  to  the  stables  he 
was  not  unobserved.  After  the  first  fury  of  the  storm 
had  passed,  Hood  put  on  a  rubber  coat,  and  taking  an 
umbrella,  went  out  to  invite  him  to  more  comfortable 
quarters.  The  Deacon  was  in  the  act  of  reviving  his 
drooping  spirits  by  a  vigorous  pull  at  the  flat  bottle 
when  Hood,  coming  suddenly  round  the  corner  of  the 
shed,  saluted  him  in  lusty  tones : 

"Hello,  Deacon,  I  should  suppose  there  was  water 


112  UNCLE  PETER  SKED 

enough  to-day  to  make  it  unnecessary  to  resort  to  other 
fluids.  How  are  you,  my  venerable  fraud?" 

Ebenezer's  face  became  very  red ;  hastily  corking 
the  flask  and  slipping  it  into  his  pocket,  he  answered : 

"Not  well,  Mr.  Hood,  not  at  all  well.  In  fact, 
I've  been  miserable  for  weeks.  The  doctor  tells  me 
it  is  some  derangement  of  the  bowels,  and  gave  me  a 
remedy  for  it.  You  found  me  taking  a  dose." 

"Stick  to  the  truth,  Deacon,"  replied  Hood  laugh 
ing,  "you  never  were  in  better  health  in  your  life. 
Men  don't  ride  a  race  when  they're  sick,  but  do  drink 
whiskey  and  lie  about  it  when  they're  well.  Come,  go 
to  the  house,  the  rain  may  not  stop  for  an  hour  or  two, 
and  in  the  meantime  you  may  as  well  sit  comfortably 
in  an  arm  shair." 

"Thank  you,"  said  the  Deacon  humbly,  "but  in 
coming  here  I  did  not  intend  to  put  you  to  any  trouble." 

"Don't   talk   of   trouble,    man,"    said   the    farmer 

heartily.    "If  I  did  not  want  you,  I  would  not  ask  you 

—  here,  take  the  bit  out  of  the  mare's  mouth  while  I 

get  a  sheaf  of  oats  for  her  to  nibble  at,  and  then  she 

will  be  as  comfortable  as  ourselves." 

Unbuckling  the  throat  latch  the  Deacon  slipped 
the  bridle  to  the  mare's  neck  so  it  would  answer  the 
purpose  of  a  halter,  and  Hood,  going  through  a  door 
opening  into  the  barn,  soon  reappeared  with  a  bundle 
of  unthreshed  oats  which  he  unbound  and  laid  before 
her.  This  done,  he  raised  the  umbrella  and  escorted 
the  Deacon  to  the  house. 

It  was  a  comfortable  place,  this  home  of  Ben 
Hood.  There  was  nothing  in  it  of  elegance  and  fash 
ion,  but  much  that  was  old,  plain  and  solid.  The 
Hoods  never  bought  an  ornament ;  whatever  they  ob 
tained  in  the  way  of  furniture  was  for  use  ;  to  be  useful 


BEN  HOOD  113 

it  must  be  strong ;  being  strong  it  lasted,  and  so  long 
as  it  lasted  it  was  not  set  aside  for  newer  and  more 
tasteful  things.  When  Deacon  Gum  took  the  chair  to 
which  he  was  invited,  his  feet  rested  on  the  skin  of  a 
bear  old  Grandfather  Hood  had  killed  fifty  years  or 
more  ago.  The  rug  wras  still  soft,  though  considera 
bly  worn.  The  antlers  on  the  wall  were  from  a  buck 
brought  down  by  the  old  man's  rifle  at  a  time  when  the 
only  flesh  obtainable  for  food  was  that  of  wild  beasts. 
Here  and  there  about  the  room  were  other  mementoes 
of  that  early  time  of  hard  work,  privation  and  peril. 
Ben  Hood's  father  had  left  his  mark  there  in  many 
ways,  but  notably  in  one.  Over  the  wide  mantel  was 
a  picture  of  William  Lloyd  Garrison,  not  done  in 
the  highest  style  of  art,  and  by  no  means  ornamental, 
but  still  suggestive  of  the  father's  political  bias.  As  a 
companion  piece  to  this,  Ben  Hood,  the  son,  had  hung 
beside  it  a  likeness  of  Wendell  Phillips,  engraved  more 
recently  than  the  other,  and  with  greater  skill. 

"It  was  a  sorry  day  for  us,"  said  Hood,  in  con 
tinuation  of  a  conversation  \vhich  I  have  thus  far 
omitted,  "when  we  opened  our  arms  and  our  ballot 
boxes  to  the  hordes  of  aliens  who  bear  down  upon  us 
from  every  quarter  of  the  globe ;  people  so  fixed  in  old 
world  customs  and  so  filled  with  old  world  ideas  that 
instead  of  accepting  the  country  as  they  find  it,  and  as 
its  founders  designed  it  to  be,  begin  the  work  of  politi 
cal  and  social  revolution  at  once.  Their  distaste  for 
their  own  governments  has  bred  in  them  a  hatred  of 
all  lav;.  Their  political  depression  there  has  been  fol 
lowed  by  a  rebound  here.  Liberty  seems  to  them  a 
restraint  and  license  an  inalienable  right.  Taking  ad 
vantage  of  our  generosity  in  receiving  them  and  in 
8 


114  UNCLE  PETER  SKED 

according  to  them  the  privileges  of  citizenship,  they 
press  clamorously  to  the  front  demanding  to  hold  the 
offices  and  make  the  laws,  and  so  the  sacred  right  of 
suffrage,  instead  of  being  reserved  exclusively  for  the 
native  born  and  home  educated,  is  given  over  without 
restriction  to  all  the  various  populations  weeded  from 
the  crowded  cities  of  the  old  world  and  thrown  like 
refuse  matter  upon  our  shores."  Here  Hood's  single 
sledge  hammer  fist  struck  the  table  before  him  vio 
lently,  and  springing  to  his  feet  as  if  he  were  about  to 
pulverize  the  gentle  Ebenezer  for  bringing  all  these 
evils  upon  an  innocent  country,  he  continued : 

"The  vile  pauper  from  the  slums  of  London,  the 
ignorant,  besotted  and  hardened  reprobate  from  the 
cess  pools  of  Dublin,  the  drunken  and  vicious  vaga 
bond  from  the  dives  of  Vienna,  the  licentious  and  rot 
ten  profligate  from  the  cellars  of  Paris,  the  escaped 
criminals  from  every  section  of  Europe  come  crowd 
ing  in  upon  us  to  become  in  a  year  or  two  voters  and 
may  be  legislators  of  the  great  American  Republic !" 

"But  many  good  men  come,  also,"  brother  Gurn 
suggested,  timidly. 

"True,  man,  true,"  replied  Ben  Hood,  softening 
somewhat,  "but  it  is  impossible  by  law  to  distinguish 
between  the  two  —  to  accept  the  good  and  reject  the 
bad ;  we  should  therefore  deny  to  all  the  right  to  vote, 
and  limit  suffrage  to  those  born  upon  the  soil.  Surely 
the  people  of  the  United  States  do  not  realize  how 
much  they  are  losing  by  the  advent  of  these  foreigners, 
nor  how  much  they  are  still  likely  to  lose  by  encourag 
ing  others  to  come.  By  our  tariff  laws  we  are  pro 
tected  against  the  pauper  labor  of  Europe,  but  not 
against  that  worse  infliction,  pauper  laborers.  These 
are  being  shipped  over  by  the  hundred  thousands  be- 


BEN  HOOD  115 

cause  it  is  cheaper  to  dump  them  down  on  our  shores 
than  to  maintain  them  in  the  poor  houses  at  home, 
and  so  they  are  coming,"  shouted  Hood,  as  he  walked 
excitedly  to  and  fro,  "by  the  million  —  faster  a  hun 
dred  fold  than  we  can  mold  them  over  in  our  schools 
and  assimilate  them  to  the  American  standard !  Com 
ing  with  their  vicious  habits  and  inherent  vices  —  with 
their  crude  notions  of  free  government,  without  any 
intelligent  idea  of  our  constitution,  our  history,  or  our 
politics  to  take  place,  almost  at  once,  in  the  great  body 
of  electors.  Coming  to  compete  with  the  native  born 
American  laborer,  to  revolutionize  our  habits ;  to  en 
graft  upon  us  the  vicious  customs  from  which  our 
fathers  fled  in  terror  :  coming  to  fill  our  workshops  and 
mines  with  strikers  ;  our  cities  with  communists,  beer 
shops,  gin  shops  and  vile  Sunday  theatres  — 

"So  they  are,  so  they  are." 

"  Coming  to  hasten  the  day  when  idleness  shall 
lay  down  the  law  to  honest  industry,  when  mobs  shall 
dictate  to  capital :  when  banks,  and  stores,  and  fac 
tories  shall  be  gutted  by  irresponsible  men,  or,  in  obe 
dience  to  laws  passed  by  cringing  demagogues  at  their 
dictation !"  Swinging  his  single  hand  above  his  head 
as  if  he  were  waving  the  banner  of  the  future,  his  voice 
rose  to  a  battle  cry,  as  he  continued :  "Is  it  not  time 
to  lift  up  the  standard  of  the  native  born,  and  inscribe 
thereon  in  letters  —  of  blood,  if  need  be  —  Americans 
shall  rule  America,  and  ask  all  who  love  liberty,  vir 
tue,  and  honor ;  who  love  the  God  of  our  fathers,  and 
the  memory  of  their  mothers,  to  rally  round  it  and 
stand  by  it  to  the  end?  Let  us  make  this  the  home  of 
an  honest,  manly,  temperate,  educated  people;  not  an 
asylum  for  imbeciles ;  not  a  penal  colony  for  old  world 
criminal? ;  not  a  place  for  the  propagation  of  vice ;  not 


116  UNCLE  PETER  SKED 

a  land  where  immorality  and  irreligion  shall  be  omnip 
otent,  but  one  in  which  truth,  justice,  sobriety,  cleanli 
ness  and  thrift  shall  bear  gentle  and  wholesome  sway.!' 

The  speaker  at  this  point  grew  considerably 
calmer,  his  tone  less  violent,  and  his  manner  more 
agreeable.  "I  would  keep  no  one  out ;  I  should  invite 
no  one  in ;  I  should  extend  a  hospitable  hand  to  all 
who  come  bearing  evidence  of  honesty  and  good  in 
tentions  ;  but  I  should  say  'the  right  to  vote  and  hold 
office  here  belongs  exclusively  to  those  born  on  the 
soil.'  Like  Moses  and  his  followers,  you  may  look 
into  the  political  Canaan,  if  you  will,  but  only  your 
children  shall  be  permitted  to  enter  and  possess.  We 
put  none  but  Americans  on  guard!" 

The  rain  had  by  this  time  ceased,  and  Ebenezer, 
rising,  announced  that  he  had  an  important  matter  of 
business  to  attend  to,  which  required  his  presence  at 
Rudd's  corners  before  the  night  set  in.  He  therefore 
took  leave  of  Hood  and  resumed  his  journey. 


X 

JOHN  RUDD 

THE  distance  from  Hood's  house  to  Rudd's  Corners 
was  a  little  over  four  miles.  The  heavy  rain 
fall  had  made  the  clay  road  muddy,  and  filled  the  ruts 
and  low  places  with  water.  As  Ebenezer  had  neither 
a  change  of  outer  nor  under  garments  with  him  he 
deemed  it  best  to  proceed  slowly,  and  with  circumspec 
tion.  He  had  suggested  to  Hood  that  he  had  import 
ant  business  before  him  which  demanded  immediate 
attention,  but  this  was  a  harmless  fiction.  His  anxiety 
to  resume  his  journey  arose  in  part  from  the  fact  that 
he  could  not  tell  at  what  moment  that  erratic  and  em 
phatic  gentleman  might  be  diverted  by  some  unaccount 
able  whimsey  from  the  subject  he  was  discussing  to 
that  of  political  prohibition,  and  the  Deacon  had  no 
desire  to  engage  in  a  controversy  with  him  on  this 
topic.  There  was,  however,  still  another  motive  prompt 
ing  him  to  get  away  from  Hood  as  soon  as  possible. 
After  he  had  been  detected  in  the  act  of  taking  medi 
cine  from  a  mysterious  and  most  ungodly  looking  bot 
tle,  and  had  in  explanation  of  it  professed  to  be  in  an 
enfeebled  condition  physically,  he  felt  that  consistency 
required  him,  while  in  Hood's  presence,  to  have  fre 
quent  pangs  of  the  stomach,  and  to  exhibit  all  the  out 
ward  signs  of  inward  distress.  He  was  therefore 
anxious  to  escape  in  order  to  re-assume  the  comfort 
able  and  easy  bearing  of  a  man  of  robust  health  and 
cheerful  spirits. 

(117) 


118  UNCLE  PETER  SKED 

When  he  had  ridden  perhaps  two  miles,  he  heard 
the  voices  of  men,  the  footfalls  of  horses,  and  the 
splash  of  wheels  behind  him ;  pretty  soon  unseemly 
songs,  profanity  and  laughter  smote  his  ears.  Turn 
ing  in  the  saddle,  he  saw  a  carriage  coming  toward 
him,  and  noticed  that  the  horses  attached  to  it  were 
being  urged  to  their  utmost  speed.  Then,  a  moment 
later,  a  voice  which  might,  for  volume,  have  equalled 
Stentor's,  called  out  not  at  all  amiably : 

"Git  outer  the  way,  there,  you  gol  blasted  ole 
fool,  or  we'll  run  over  you." 

The  occupants  of  the  carriage  appeared  to  have  no 
regard  for  Ebenezer's  safety,  and  would  have  driven 
over  him  if  they  could.  Indeed  they  might  just  as  well 
have  done  so,  for  they  dashed  down  so  swiftly  on  him 
and  with  such  flourishings  of  the  whip  and  terrifying 
yells,  that  the  mouse-colored  mare,  becoming  alarmed, 
shyed  suddenly  to  the  left,  and  thereupon  the  good 
Deacon  involuntarily  quit  his  saddle  and  dropped  with 
a  great  splash  into  a  convenient  puddle.  Then  there 
were  roars  of  delight  from  the  men  in  the  carriage, 
and  a  craning  of  necks  out  of  the  sides  of  it  to  con 
gratulate  Gum  on  the  alacrity  with  which  he  had  dis 
mounted,  and  the  good  judgment  displayed  in  the  se 
lection  of  a  place  to  light.  Indeed,  they  were  exceed 
ingly  merry  and  kept  up  a  constant  fusilade  of  taunt 
and  sarcasm,  until  they  got  so  far  away  their  voices 
could  be  no  longer  heard. 

For  a  brief  space  of  time  the  reverend  Ebenezer 
forgot  his  mission  in  life,  and  expressed  his  feelings 
so  much  after  the  fashion  of  the  unholy  that  the  at 
mosphere  about  him  became  lurid,  and  seemed  to 
have  in  it  a  taint  of  brimstone.  He  mentioned  the 
occupants  of  the  carriage  by  name  in  connection  with 


JOHN  RUDD  119 

an  exceedingly  hot  place  where  he  hoped  they  would 
in  due  time  be  forked  over  with  red  hot  forks,  grilled, 
baked,  fried,  and  then  turned  over  and  toasted  on  the 
other  side ;  and  he  hoped  there  would  be  no  scarcity 
of  fuel  there,  and  no  lack  of  industrious  forkers  to 
fork,  for  it  was  the  Deacon's  earnest  desire  that  the 
gentlemen  in  the  carriage  should  not  be  underdone 
for  want  of  cooking.  After  he  had  expressed  his  sen 
timents  on  this  subject  as  fully  and  vigorously  as  the 
limited  number  and  amiable  character  of  the  words  in 
the  English  language  would  allow,  he  turned  to  the 
mouse-colored  mare  and  found  much  to  his  chagrin 
that  this  sagacious  animal  was  disinclined  to  recognize 
him.  The  Deacon,  however,  finally  succeeded  in  lay 
ing  his  hands  on  her  bridle  rein,  and  in  remounting; 
but  when  he  pressed  the  saddle  the  water  oozed  from 
beneath  him  and  trickled  down  his  limbs  in  discolored 
rivulets,  making  his  flesh  creep  and  his  blood  run  cold. 
Then  it  occurred  to  him  that  if  there  ever  was  a  time 
when  a  human  being  needed  something  to  counteract 
the  effect  of  dampness,  it  was  the  present,  and  so  he 
had  recourse  again  to  the  mysterious  flask  which  he 
carried  in  an  inside  picket,  where  it  could  not  attract 
the  attention  of  the  worldly,  and  become  a  stumbling 
block  to  the  foolish.  Having  discharged  this  duty  to 
his  physical  structure,  Brother  Ebenezer  gave  the  mare 
two  lively  prods  in  the  ribs  with  his  heels  and  trotted 
along  towards  Rudd's  Corners,  wholly  indifferent  as 
to  whether  his  apparel  received  a  speck  more  or  less 
of  the  mud  flying  from  her  hoofs. 

The  carriage  which  had  just  passed  was  occu 
pied  by  Colonel  Albright,  the  great  Greenback  orator, 
and  three  impecunious  and  irresponsible  gentlemen  of 
Cranberry.  The  latter  had  achieved  some  measure  of 


120  UNCLE  PETER  SKED 

local  distinction  by  giving  their  neighbors  much  un 
solicited  information  respecting  the  management  of  na 
tional  affairs.  It  has  always  been  difficult  for  men 
of  ordinary  capacity  to  understand  just  how  gentle 
men  whose  mental  grasp  is  insufficient  to  take  in  the 
details  of  the  business  of  a  peanut  vender  should  with 
out  special  study  become  thoroughly  conversant  with 
the  financial  operations  of  the  United  States.  But  the 
fact,  inexplicable  as  it  seems,  must  be  recognized. 

There  was  to  be  a  Greenback  rally  at  Rudd's.  The 
gentlemen  in  the  carriage  were  going  to  it.  Placards 
announced  that  the  distinguished  and  eloquent  Colonel 
Albright  would  address  the  meeting  and  discuss  the 
issues  of  the  day  in  a  fair,  candid  and  statesmanlike 
manner.  When  Deacon  Gum  reached  the  Corners  in 
the  dusk  of  the  evening,  he  saw  many  people  standing 
in  the  road  near  Rudd's  store,  and  conspicuous  among 
them  was  the  ponderous  figure  of  the  ruddy  faced  John 
Rudd.  This  gentleman  was  giving  his  friends  much 
valuable  information  as  to  the  amount  of  money  there 
was  per  capita,  and  the  amount  there  should  be  to 
make  the  wheels  of  commerce  move  easily,  and  enable 
farmers  and  laboring  men  to  live  comfortably  and  lay 
up  something  for  a  rainy  day. 

John  Rudd  had  inherited  a  broad  farm,  but  soon 
concluded  there  were  easier  ways  of  making  money 
than  by  digging  it  out  of  the  soil,  and  so  engaged  in 
the  business  of  buying  his  neighbors'  cattle  and  ship 
ping  them  to  eastern  markets ;  then  he  opened  a  store 
and  subsequently  started  an  ashery,  and  thus  in  time 
became  farmer,  shipper,  merchant  and  manufacturer. 
With  his  attention  and  energies  divided  between  so 
many  pursuits  it  followed  that  no  one  of  them  was 
ever  prosecuted  successfully.  In  a  little  while  the 


JOHN  KUDD  121 

farm  became  unproductive  for  want  of  proper  cultiva 
tion  ;  the  shipping  ventures  unprofitable  for  lack  of 
attention  to  market  reports  and  freight  rates.  The 
store  a  losing  concern  for  lack  of  skill  in  purchasing 
and  care  in  the  keeping  of  accounts,  and  the  ashery  a 
failure  for  want  of  intelligent  personal  supervision. 

The  fact  is  John  Rudd  had  neither  the  money  to 
carry  on  his  various  enterprises  nor  the  skill  to  manage 
them.  He  was  compelled  to  borrow,  then  to  meet  old 
liabilities  by  contracting  new  ones,  until  finally  he  saw 
but  one  way  to  escape  from  his  pecuniary  troubles.  If 
the  Government  were  to  double  the  currency  by  a 
further  issue  of  greenbacks,  it  would  depreciate  the 
legal  tender  dollar  and  enable  him  to  get  more  of 
them  for  his  property  than  he  could  now  obtain.  He 
was,  therefore,  in  favor  of  flooding  the  country  with 
irredeemable  paper  money  and  making  it  as  nearly 
worthless  as  possible.  If  his  scheme  were  sanctioned 
by  Congress  his  creditors  would  be  forced  to  accept 
in  liquidation  of  their  claims  one-half  the  value  of 
what  they  gave,  and  the  other  half  would  remain  in 
his  possession. 

Ginger's  communistic  theory  of  the  common  own 
ership  of  property  is  better  founded  and  more  defensi 
ble  than  Rudd's  inflation  scheme.  The  communist  rec 
ognizes  no  man's  title  superior  to  his  own,  and  bases 
his  claim  to  an*  equal  share  with  all  others,  upon  an 
original  and  indefeasible  right.  The  inflationist  con 
cedes  the  right  of  special  ownership,  but  would  deprive 
men  of  their  property  by  a  shabby  legislative  trick,  and 
appropriate  it  to  his  own  individual  use. 

Brother  Ebenezer  having  reached  the  end  of  his 
journey,  dismounted  at  the  gate  of  Ezekiel  Pitkin,  a 
member  of  the  Society  of  Friends,  a  thrifty  farmer, 


122  UNCLE  PETER  SKED 

and  as  honest  a  man  as  ever  trod  shoe-leather.  The 
Deacon  proposes  to  honor  Friend  Pitkin  by  accepting 
his  hospitality  for  the  night,  and  after  he  has  been  gen 
erously  entertained  he  will  endeavor  to  obtain  the 
trifling  sum  of  fifty  dollars  from  his  worthy  host  as 
a  contribution  to  the  campaign  fund  of  the  Prohibi 
tion  party.  To  accomplish  this  stroke  of  business  he 
will  have  much  to  say  of  the  growing  sentiment  in 
favor  of  political  prohibition :  of  the  many  ways  in 
which  money  may  be  honestly  and  advantageously 
used  to  promote  the  cause ;  of  temperance  tracts  to  be 
printed  and  distributed ;  of  meetings  to  be  held  and 
speakers  to  be  obtained ;  of  much  quiet  but  effective 
work  to  be  done,  all  of  which  no  one  person  can  afford 
to  do  wholly  at  his  own  expense.  In  short,  the  appeal 
for  money  will  be  so  adroitly  and  touchingly  made, 
that  the  honest  Quake*  will  finally  exclaim : 

"God  bless  thee.  Friend  Ebenezer !  Thee  shall 
not  bear  the  burden  alone.  Thee  has  already  done 
more  than  thy  share,  and  must  allow  me  to  help  in 
the  great  work  —  nay,  nay.  Ebenezer.  thee  must  not 
decline  my  humble  offering  —  perhaps  it  should  be 
more,  but  it  shall  at  least  be  this  much  now." 

The  people  who  had  gathered  about  John  Rudd's 
store  in  the  early  evening  were  now  assembled  in  the 
little  school-house  to  hear  Colonel  A4bright.  There 
were,  perhaps,  fifty  persons  in  the  room,  counting  men 
and  boys.  John  Rudd  was  selected  to  preside,  and 
without  preliminary  remarks,  introduced  the  speaker 
to  the  audience.  The  Colonel's  first  attempt  to  rise 
was  only  partially  successful.  His  legs  seemed  dis 
inclined  to  assume  and  maintain  a  perpendicular  atti 
tude  and  were  apparently  disposed  to  double  up  or 


JOHN  KUDD  123 

dodge  off  and  precipitate  him  onto  the  chairman. 
Their  eccentric  behavior  prompted  the  small  boys  in 
the  audience  to  titter,  nudge  each  other,  and  indulge 
in  mischievous  winks.  In  their  innocency  and  ignor 
ance  these  young  gentlemen  concluded  the  Colonel  had 
been  imbibing  too  frequently,  and  that  there  would  be, 
therefore,  rare  fun  before  the  meeting  ended.  But 
lads  know  little  of  the  unreliability  of  mature  legs,  and 
can  have  no  conception  of  the  multitude  of  instances 
in  which  their  preverse  and  unstable  conduct  have  put 
the  reputations  of  respectable  men  in  jeopardy  —  men 
noted  for  their  piety,  men  of  family,  men  conspicuous 
in  field  and  forum.  Men  who  would  not  for  the  world 
have  set  a  bad  example  to  the  young.  SMALL  BOY,  BE 
JUST  !  Bear  in  mind  that  after  legs  mature  they  often 
become  difficult  to  control,  and  sometimes  wholly  un 
manageable. 

The  Colonel  finally  succeeded  in  getting  some 
slight  advantage  of  his  nether  extremities,  by  clutch 
ing  with  both  hands  the  back  of  the  presiding  officer's 
chair,  and  addressing  the  audience  over  John  Rudd's 
head.  His  opening,  however,  was  a  surprise  to  his 
hearers.  It  consisted  of  a  brief  but  eloquent  summary 
of  the  virtues  of  the  great  American  Ache  Annihilator. 
This  medicine  had  never  failed  to  effect  a  cure.  It  had 
given  relief  to  thousands.  Health  was  man's  greatest 
blessing.  Vanderbilt  with  all  his  millions  could  not  be 
happy  with  a  jumping  toothache.  Nature  had  provided 
a  cheap  and  simple  remedy.  He  had  it  with  him  — 

At  this  point  the  Colonel's  legs  weakened  so  sud 
denly  that  he  disappeared  behind  John  Rudd's  bulky 
form.  Thinking  he  had  gone  down  for  the  remedy, 
the  boys  whistled  and  laughed,  and  seemed  about  to 
jump  out  of  their  young  skins.  But  they  were  mis- 


124  UNCLE  PETER  SKED 

taken.  The  Colonel  did  not  have  the  medicine  with 
him.  When  he  came  up  John  Rudd  rose  and  turning 
his  back  to  the  audience,  confronted  the  orator  in  a 
v.ery  angry  and  dictatorial  manner,  and  for  a  time 
seemed  disposed  to  assist  the  Colonel's  legs  in  their  ef 
forts  to  overthrow  him.  The  action  of  the  chairman, 
however,  instead  of  disconcerting  the  speaker,  simply 
reminded  him  of  the  question  he  was  expected  to  dis 
cuss,  and  he  at  once  proceeded  with  his  discourse. 

The  great  remedy  for  all  the  aches  and  ills  of 

the  commonwealth  is  greenbacks,  more  money,  good 
money  —  money  that  will  be  a  first  lien  on  the  real 
estate,  live  stock,  brains  and  muscle  of  the  country. 
Money  that  will  bear  upon  its  face  the  image  of  the 
American  eagle  —  a  bird  that  can  fly  higher,  screech 
louder  and  fight  harder  than  any  other  bird  on  the 
face  of  the  earth  (applause).  Fellow  citizens,  that 
bird's  tail  brushes  the  snow-clad  peaks  of  Alaska ;  his 
beak  touches  the  tepid  waters  of  the  Gulf  of  Mexico, 
while  his  outstretched  wings  cover  a  continent  and  dip 
in  the  waters  of  two  oceans  (tremendous  applause). 
This  is  the  kind  of  money  for  a  free  people  to  have. 
It  is  the  best  money  the  sun  ever  shone  on ;  far  better 
than  gold,  and  it  may  be  made  as  abundant  as  the 
leaves  of  the  forest.  We  have  now  but  a  beggarly 
thousand  million  of  money  of  all  sorts.  What  would 
be  the  effect  on  business  if  another  thousand  million 
were  issued  ?  It  would  double  the  price  of  your  farms ; 
it  would  enable  you  to  obtain  two  hundred  dollars  for 
a  horse  which  now  sells  for  one  hundred.  A  sheep 
which  fetches  four  dollars  would  then  bring  eight.  A 
bushel  of  wheat  that  nowr  sells  for  one  dollar  would 
then  be  valued  at  twro.  Can  anybody  say  the  farmers 
would  not  be  benefited  by  an  increase  of  the  currency  ? 


JOHN  EUDD  125 

("No,  no,"  and  cheers.)  Such  an  assertion  would  be 
absurd.  How  is  it  with  the  laboring  man  —  the  hard- 
fisted  son  of  toil?  His  wages  would  be  increased  a 
hundred  per  cent.  He  would  get  two  dollars  a  day 
instead  of  oiie.  Will  anybody  claim  two  dollars  are 
not  better  than  one?  (Applause.)  Come,  now,  let 
us  reason  together  like  sensible  men.  Why  not  double 
every  man's  wealth  by  doubling  the  money  of  the 
country?  Why  not?  Do  you  say  the  money  wouldn't 
be  good  ?  Ah,  no,  you  couldn't  say  that,  for  you  know 
everybody  would  be  eager  to  get  as  much  of  it  as  pos 
sible  ("that's  so"  and  cheers)  ;  you  must  admit,  there 
fore,  that  it  would  be  good.  Xow,  if  by  adding  a 
thousand  million  to  the  present  volume  of  currency  we 
can  double  our  wealth ;  by  the  addition  of  still  another 
thousand  million  we  can  treble  it  (applause),  you  see, 
therefore,  how  easy  it  is  for  Congress  to  make  every 
body  rich  and  happy.  A  heifer  which  now  sells  for 
fifty  dollars  would  then  sell  for  one  hundred  and  fifty. 
The  Thanksgiving  turkey  which  now  goes  in  the  mar 
ket  for  the  beggarly  sum  of  a  dollar  would  then  fetch 
three.  Every  farmer's  wife,  therefore,  should  favor 
an  increase  of  paper  money  (applause).  It  would 
treble  the  price  of  her  domestic  fowls,  and  a  common 
hen's  egg  would  then  be  worthy  of  her  special  care,  for 
from  the  egg  would  come  a  chicken,  and  for  the 
chicken  would  come  a  greenback  dollar,  as  much  al 
most  as  a  farm  hand  now  obtains  for  a  hard  day's  work 
(cheers).  Fellow  citizens,  the  Greenbackers  have  no 
candidate  and  will  have  none  unless  they  conclude  to 
nominate  John  Rudd,  our  most  worthy  chairman  (tu 
multuous  applause).  If  they  were  to  put  him  in  the 
field  your  speaker  would  stand  by  him  to  the  end 
(cheers).  But  in  case  no  nomination  is  made  by  the 


126  UNCLE  PETER  SKED 

Greenbackers,  there  will  still  be  something  at  the  polls 
for  Greenbackers  to  do.  There  is  a  choice  for  them 
to  make  between  two  evils.  The  Democrats  are  bad 
enough.  Heaven  knows,  but  the  Republicans  are  in 
finitely  worse ;  so  bad,  in  fact,  that  if  they  were  to  suc 
ceed  in  this  election  the  money  kings  of  the  country 
would  be  omnipotent  (''that's  so")  ;  the  poor,  trampled 
in  the  dust;  the  currency  contracted,  business  par 
alyzed,  and  the  nation  bankrupted.  ("True,  true.") 
The  party  which  goes  part  way  in  the  right  direction 
should  always  be  preferred  to  one  bound  to  continue 
altogether  in  the  wrong,  and  so  in  this  contest  the  in 
terest  of  the  Greenbacker  and  patriot  is  with  Andrew 
Jackson  Travis.  (Applause.) 

As  Colonel  Albright  proceeded  with  his  two  hours' 
discourse,  his  mind  seemed  not  only  to  gradually  ex 
pand,  and  to  operate  with  increasing  freedom,  but  his 
articulation  grew  clearer  and  more  musical,  and  when 
the  meeting  adjourned  it  was  John  Rudd's  deliberate 
judgment  that  notwithstanding  the  Colonel's  peculiar 
and  apparently  irrelevant  opening  he  had  made  the 
ablest  and  most  eloquent  speech  ever  delivered  in  Cran 
berry  County.  The  argument  was  absolutely  incon 
trovertible  and  overwhelming. 


XI 

ROBERT  BRETT 

LEAVING  the  good  people  of  Cranberry  County 
for  a  while  in  charge  of  Brother  Ebenezer  and 
Colonel  Albright,  the  reader  will  be  asked  to  ascend 
the  Great  Lakes  as  far  as  Duluth,  then  follow  the  line 
of  the  Northern  Pacific  railway  through  forests  and 
swamps  until  it  enters  upon  an  undulating  prairie,  and 
then  on  by  construction  trains,  until  schools,  churches, 
homes,  and  all  the  marks  of  civilization,  except  the 
iron  track  over  which  he  travels  are  left  hundreds  of 
miles  behind.  When  at  last  he  reaches  the  end  of  the 
railway,  he  will  find  spread  out  before  him  a  canvass 
city  which  last  week  was  five  miles  east  of  its  present 
site  and  next  week  will  probably  be  five  miles  west. 
It  is  known  as  Hell-on-wheels,  and  its  population,  in 
cluding  those  lodged  and  fed  in  rough  boarding  house 
cars,  consists  of  some  thousands  of  workingmen,  en 
gaged  in  building  a  railway  across  the  continent. 

Among  the  stalwart  laborers  gathered  here  is  one 
with  whose  name  the  reader  is  not  wholly  unfamiliar. 
He  has  been  employed  in  one  capacity  and  another  on 
the  line  of  the  road  ever  since  its  construction  began. 
For  months  while  in  the  timber  region  he  swung  an  axe 
and  drew  an  axeman's  wages,  lost  in  the  great  army 
of  working  men  around  him.  In  time  it  was  observed 
by  the  leader  of  the  gang  to  which  he  belonged,  that 
he  always  responded  to  his  name  at  the  morning  roll- 
call  ;  then,  that  he  could  be  trusted  in  the  management 

(127) 


128  UNCLE  PETER  SKED 

of  small  affairs ;  then,  that  in  the  rough  encounters 
which  frequently  occur  among  men  of  different  nation 
alities  he  was  a  dangerous  antagonist  to  meet.  Being 
one  of  the  oldest  residents  of  Hell-on-wheels,  he  was 
occasionally  referred  to  as  authority  respecting  certain 
matters  connected  with  the  earlier  history  of  the  enter 
prise,  and  thus  he  was  brought  in  contact  with  the 
leading  men  of  the  construction  company,  who,  find 
ing  him  quiet,  thoughtful,  and  fairly  educated,  finally 
ventured  to  sublet  portions  of  their  work  to  him  as 
they  did  to  others.  After  completing  one  contract  sat 
isfactorily  to  his  employers,  he  obtained  other  and 
larger  ones,  and  so  for  three  years  he  had  been  making 
money  rapidly  and  investing  it  in  the  seven  per  cent. 
land  grant  bonds  of  the  railway  company.  He  could 
now  count  up  over  one  hundred  thousand  dollars  in 
these  securities  as  the  reward  of  his  labor,  skill  and 
privation. 

Had  he  enough?  Would  it  be  well  for  him  to 
remain  longer  in  Hell-on-wheels?  Could  he  not  find 
a  better  life  elsewhere?  He  had  labored  diligently, 
should  he  not  rest  while  pleasure  could  still  be  found 
in  resting?  In  five  or  ten  years  more,  youth  would  be 
gone,  the  meridian  of  life  at  hand,  and  thereafter  the 
descent  to  the  grave  rapid ;  should  he  take  his  vaca 
tion  now,  or  then?  Was  there  anything  in  the  mere 
accumulation  of  money  to  afford  him  pleasure  ?  Money 
unused  was  no  whit  better  than  money  unpossessed. 
A  hundred  thousand  was  a  round  sum ;  it  was  seven 
thousand  a  year.  Another  three  or  four  years  of  labor 
might  double  the  principal,  but  wrould  the  larger 
amount  pay  for  the  sacrifice  required  to  obtain  it? 
What  good  can  come  from  being  able  to  draw  a  check 
for  a  million  if  one  never  has  occasion  to  do  it?  Monev 


ROBERT  BRETT  129 

is  valueless  except  for  use,  and  then  only  valuable 
when  used  for  a  good  purpose. 

There,  for  instance,  is  old  Grinderscoop,  oi  St. 
Paul.  He  has  two  millions,  but  neither  chick  nor  child. 
He  has  been  robbing  his  neighbors  in  a  polite  and  law 
ful  way  for  forty  years.  The  interest  of  his  money  for 
one  month  would  supply  all  his  natural  wants  for  the 
remainder  of  his  life.  How  is  he  benefited  by  the 
ownership  of  two  millions?  Suppose  the  money  were 
lost  and  he  should  never  know  it,  would  he  not  con 
tinue  just  as  happy  as  he  is  now?  A  month  of  youth 
with  all  its  capacities  for  enjoyment  would  be  worth 
more  to  him  than  a  hundred  millions.  Nobody  wants 
a  thousand  umbrellas  when  it  rains,  one  only  can  be 
used.  Enough  is  sufficient,  and  more  than  enough, 
too  much. 

Entering  into  Robert  Brett's  discussion  with  him 
self  on  this  occasion,  was  his  recollection  of  Gertrude 
Frazier.  She  had  told  him  to  go,  and  he  thought  at 
the  time  if  her  love  for  him  had  been  as  strong  as  his 
for  her,  she  would  not  have  been  so  ready  —  nay,  eager 
to  have  him  leave.  It  may  be,  indeed,  she  had  never 
cared  for  him  at  all,  but  had  accepted  him  as  the  best 
of  those  around  her,  none  of  whom  was  exactly  to  her 
liking.  It  was  seven  years  ago  that  he  left  Cranberry. 
Gertrude  was  a  young  girl  then ;  she  may  have  mar 
ried  since.  Many  men  are  eager  enough  to  win  such 
a  woman  ;  she  was  probably  married.  But  then  she 
was  not  the  only  woman  in  the  world,  and  there  were 
also  many  pleasant  objects  in  it  besides  women.  A 
man  who  has  lived  in  Hell-on-wheels  for  five  years 
could  probably  enjoy  himself  pretty  well  any  place 
outside  of  it.  It  would  be  pleasant  at  any  rate  to  visit 


130  UNCLE  PETER  SKED 

the  scenes  of  his  boyhood ;  to  drop  a  line  for  bass,  and 
get  a  whiff  of  the  lake  air  again. 

At  the  conclusion  of  his  meditations,  Brett 
whistled  for  his  servant. 

"John,  tell  Craig  to  come  over  if  he  has  leisure." 

"Ef  he  hab  what,  sah?" 

"Tell  Craig  I  want  to  see  him." 

"Yas,  sah." 

When  John  withdrew,  Brett  took  a  book  from  a 
drawer  of  the  table  before  which  he  sat,  turned  the 
leaves  of  it,  until  he  found  the  page  on  which  a  debit 
and  credit  account  was  kept  with  outfit ;  running  up 
the  two  columns  of  figures  he  ascertained  this  fic 
titious  personage  was  indebted  to  him  a  little  over  ten 
thousand  dollars.  By  the  time  this  was  done  and  the 
calculation  verified  by  a  review  of  the  additions  and 
subtractions,  the  man  he  had  sent  for  entered  the  tent. 

"Craig,"'  said  Brett,  handing  him  the  book,  "look 
over  that  account.  The  articles  on  hand  are  in  fair 
condition." 

The  man  ran  his  eyes  down  the  list  of  items  slow 
ly.  It  embraced  horses,  mules,  wagons,  scrapers, 
plows,  shovels,  picks  and  supplies  of  beef,  pork,  flour, 
etc.  Such  articles,  in  brief,  as  railway  contractors 
must  have  to  prosecute  their  work. 

"A  little  over  ten  thousand,"  he  said,  looking  up. 

"Yes,"  replied  Brett.  "Now  I  have  this  proposi 
tion  to  make.  Give  me  your  check  for  six  thousand, 
take  the  property,  and  I'll  not  bid  against  you  on  to 
morrow's  letting." 

"Are  you  going  away?" 

"If  you  accept,  I  shall  leave  for  St.  Paul  to-mor 
row." 


ROBERT  BRETT  131 

"Make  out  the  bill  of  sale.  Have  you  a  blank  on 
the  First  Minneapolis?" 

"I  keep  my  account  in  St.  Paul." 

"While  you  are  writing  the  bill  of  sale,  I'll  go  to 
my  tent  and  fill  out  a  check." 

The  next  morning  Brett  left  for  St.  Paul ;  two 
days  subsequently  he  drew  enough  money  from  his 
bank  for  current  wants,  obtained  drafts  on  Jay  Cooke 
and  Company,  New  York,  for  fifteen  thousand  dollars, 
and  started  on  the  evening  train  for  the  east. 

At  Chicago  he  stopped  off  intending  to  remain 
long  enough  to  supply  himself  with  such  articles  of 
clothing  as  he  needed.  Proceeding  to  the  Sherman 
House  he  took  a  bath  and  dined,  and  then  left  the  hotel 
for  a  stroll  about  the  city.  He  had  been  sauntering 
along  the  streets  for  two  hours  or  more,  pausing  here 
and  there  to  look  into  the  windows  of  jeweler,  book 
seller  and  merchant,  when  he  observed  men  hurrying 
past  him  with  an  expression  of  great  anxiety,  if  not  of 
terror  on  their  faces.  Going  into  the  Palmer  House 
he  found  the  lobby  filled  with  excited  men ;  not  desir 
ing  to  become  involved  in  such  an  assemblage,  he 
turned  to  retrace  his  steps  to  the  Sherman,  and  had 
proceeded  but  a  short  distance  when  the  cry  of  a  news 
boy  took  the  very  blood  from  his  face,  for  it  told  him 
a  great  misfortune  had  befallen  the  country,  and  one 
which  would  press  with  special  severity  upon  himself. 
He  bought  a  paper  and  as  he  walked  along  the  crowded 
avenue,  ran  his  eyes  over  the  telgraphic  column.  Jay 
Cooke  and  Company  had  failed,  and  business  houses 
from  the  Atlantic  to  the  Pacific  were  being  swept  down 
by  the  financial  cyclone  like  rotten  reeds  before  a  tem 
pest.  His  drafts  were  probably  worthless ;  his  bonds 
certainlv  of  but  little  value  and  utterlv  unsalable.  All 


132  UNCLE  PETER  SKED 

he  had  upon  which  he  could  rely  with  any  confidence 
were  the  few  banknotes  in  his  pocket.  These  were 
good  because  the  Government  of  the  United  States 
stood  behind  them. 

Hastening  to  his  hotel  he  ascertained  the  first  train 
for  St.  Paul  would  depart  in  an  hour.  He  paid  his 
bill  and  ordering  a  cab  proceeded  to  the  depot.  He 
was  anxious  to  get  off  and  might  as  well  pass  an 
idle  hour  at  the  station  waiting  for  the  departure  of  the 
train  as  to  spend  it  elsewhere.  To  Brett  the  time 
seemed  to  move  with  exceeding  slowness,  as  it  always 
does  to  those  eager  to  set  out  upon  a  journey  of  either 
business  or  pleasure.  A  few  persons  having  no  vis 
ible  means  of  support  were  loitering  about  apparently 
indifferent  whether  the  hands  of  the  depot  clock  went 
forward  or  stood  still.  Their  heads  being  as  empty  as 
their  pockets,  they  took  the  world  easily  and  were  ad 
mirably  prepared  to  withstand  the  pecuniary  whirl 
wind  which  was  now  sweeping  the  country.  Brett 
would  probably  have  regarded  them  with  envy  if  he 
had  thought  about  them  at  all,  but  his  attention  was 
just  then  again  attracted  by  the  newsboy's  cry :  "Fail 
ure  of  Jay  Cooke  &  Co. ;  all  about  the  panic."  Buy 
ing  a  second  paper  he  glanced  hurriedly  over  the  head 
lines  as  he  walked  impatiently  about  the  platform  and 
skimmed  through  the  telegraphic  column,  but  as  the 
first  reports  were  simply  confirmed  and  reinforced  by 
others  equally  alarming,  he  cast  the  sheet  aside. 

The  people  were  gathering  now ;  a  man  stood  at 
the  gateway  ready  when  time  was  up  to  open  it  and  ad 
mit  the  outgoing  travelers  to  the  train.  Brett  paused 
for  a  moment,  looked  up  at  the  clock  and  saw  there 
were  still  five  minutes  to  wait.  Turning  to  resume  his 
walk  he  was  confronted  by  a  familiar  face.  It  was 


ROBERT  BRETT  133 

that  of  Archie  Frazier.     The  recognition  was  mutual, 
and  the  recollection  of  the  old  quarrel  quickened  the 
blood  of  the  two  men,  and  perhaps  prompted  them 
to  clinch  their  fists,  and  make  ready  for  battle ;  but  the 
belligerent  impulse  passed  from  Brett's  heart  instantly, 
and  a  moment  later  Frazier  extending  his  hand,  said : 
"Forgive  me ;    let  us  meet  as  friends." 
Accepting  the  proffered  hand,  Brett  asked : 
"Do  you  come  from  —  home  —  from  Cranberry  ?" 
"No  —  not  recently;    I  have  been  away  over  six 
years." 

"Have  you  heard  from  your —  from  there  lately?" 
"Not  a  word.    Have  you?" 
"No." 

The  gate  was  thrown  open  now  and  the  two  men 
passed  through  it  together,  but  separated  a  moment 
later ;  they  were  going  in  different  directions. 

The  thoughts  suggested  by  this  accidental  meeting 
took  possession  of  Brett,  but  after  a  while  his  mind 
reverted  to  his  pecuniary  troubles,  and  continued  to 
pursue  them  until  late  at  night.  If  he  had  never  had 
the  money  it  is  probable  he  wrould  never  have  felt  the 
need  of  it.  Certainly  he  would  never  have  imagined 
such  a  loss  could  affect  him  keenly.  It  was  perhaps 
not  the  money  now  of  which  he  thought  most,  but  the 
impossibility  which  the  loss  entailed  of  entering  upon 
the  line  of  life  for  which  he  longed.  After  a  time,  and 
before  he  dropped  off  to  sleep,  he  was  able  to  think 
over  the  matter  more  calmly  and  clearly.  It  occurred 
to  him  that  much  might  still  be  saved  from  the  wreck. 
The  bank  from  which  he  obtained  the  drafts,  if  unable 
to  stand  up  against  the  first  fury  of  the  storm,  might 
soon  resume  and  make  good  its  obligations.  Even  the 
bonds  might  ultimately  be  worth  something.  These 


134  UNCLE  PETEK  SKED 

were  a  first  lien  on  certain  sections  of  land  through 
which  the  road  was  built.  But  then  again,  if  the  road 
were  never  completed  to  the  Pacific,  it  might  not  pay 
running  expenses,  and  hence  cease  to  be  operated  alto 
gether.  In  this  event  the  lands  on  either  side  of  it 
would  be  inaccessible  to  settlers  and  therefore  value 
less.  Still  Jay  Cooke  and  Company,  having  had  so 
much,  must  now  have  something  left,  and  this  would 
go  part  way,  at  least,  toward  the  payment  of  their 
debts.  At  any  rate  it  would  do  no  good  to  worry 
over  the  matter  to-night,  or  to  speculate  farther  as  to 
results.  When  he  reached  St.  Paul  he  would  probably 
obtain  some  definite  information  upon  which  to  base 
calculations  as  to  the  probable  outcome  of  it  all. 

The  bank  from  which  Brett  obtained  his  drafts 
had  suspended.  It  was  the  St.  Paul  correspondent  of 
Jay  Cooke  and  Company,  and  had  made  large  advances 
on  Northern  Pacific  bonds.  There  was  now  no  mar 
ket  for  these  securities,  and  so  far  as  men  could  tell 
no  value  to  them.  Work  on  the  railroad  had  ceased; 
workmen  were  making  angry  demands  for  their 
wages :  contractors  and  traders  were  besieging  banks 
and  money-lenders  for  accommodations,  but  the  cur 
rency  of  the  country  had  wholly  disappeared.  Even 
a  Government  six  per  cent,  could  now  hardly  find  a 
purchaser.  A  million  of  productive  property  could  not 
tempt  a  thousand  dollars  in  currency  from  the  strong 
box.  There  was  nothing  in  the  estimation  of  the  pub 
lic  so  precious  as  spot  cash,  and  everybody  began  to 
clutch  and  hoard.  Business  men,  theretofore  in  high 
credit,  acknowledged  with  shamed  faces  their  inability 
to  meet  maturing  obligations.  Men  lost  confidence  in 
each  other.  Fear  of  bankruptcy  and  ruin  dominated 
every  thought  and  controlled  every  action.  The  cur- 


ROBERT  BRETT  135 

rent  of  business  was  as  suddenly  congealed  as  a 
stream  might  be  which  ventured  into  the  frigid  tem 
perature  of  an  Arctic  winter.  And  yet,  strange  to  say, 
not  a  dollar  —  not  a  penny  had  been  lost  from  the 
wealth  of  the  country.  The  volume  of  currency  had 
not  been  diminished  to  the  extent  of  a  single  mill.  Ac 
tual  property  had  in  no  way  been  destroyed  or  lessened. 
There  were  lands  enough  and  houses  enough;  mer 
chandise,  manufactures,  and  food  enough.  The  only 
thing  lost  was  confidence  in  the  integrity  and  capacity 
of  men. 

The  thing  called  credit  had  been  stricken  down. 
Every  man,  therefore,  held  what  he  had,  seized  what 
he  could  and  felt  that  he  was  surrounded  by  robbers. 
Strong  men  wept  and  spent  sleepless  nights,  not  over 
the  loss  of  fortunes,  but  the  loss  of  what  they  regarded 
as  infinitely  more  valuable,  commercial  honor.  Gen 
erous  men  in  their  eagerness  to  maintain  their  rep 
utation  for  punctuality  in  business  affairs,  were 
guilty  of  outrageous  oppression.  Men  who  had  gone 
into  the  bloodiest  battles  of  the  war  with  confidence  and 
cheerfulness,  now  went  to  their  offices  with  trembling 
limbs,  opened  their  doors  with  quaking  hearts,  then 
stood  in  an  agony  of  suspense,  well  knowing  that  at 
any  moment  a  claim  might  be  presented  which  would 
wring  from  them  a  humiliating  confession  of  inability 
to  pay. 

The  officers  of  the  bank  with  which  Brett  had 
kept  his  account  assured  him  his  special  deposit  of 
bonds  would  be  returned  to  him  at  any  hour,  but  for 
the  amounts  of  the  drafts  he  would  have  to  wait  until 
an  improvement  in  the  condition  of  monetary  affairs 
made  payment  possible.  With  no  prospect  of  finding 
immediate  employment,  and  with  barely  sufficient 


136  .  UNCLE  PETER  SKED 

ready  money  to  support  him  through  the  coming  win 
ter,  he  turned  away  from  the  bank  determined  like  a 
good  soldier  to  keep  his  eyes  to  the  front.  No  amount 
of  worrying  could  add  to  the  value  of  either  his  bonds 
or  drafts,  but  energy7,  perseverance  and  skill  could 
contribute  much  to  his  future  happiness. 

The  financial  storm  of  1873,  though  more  violent 
than  any  which  preceded  it,  occasioned  no  permanent 
damage  to  the  business  of  the  country ;  on  the  con 
trary  it  simply  precipitated  a  settlement,  which  under 
existing  circumstances,  could  not  have  been  long  post 
poned,  and  accomplished  in  a  few  months  what  other 
wise  would  only  have  been  effected  by  years  of  inac 
tivity  and  dullness. 

The  reaction  in  business  set  in  very  soon.  Those 
who  found  they  had  not  been  hurt  grew  suddenly  bold  ; 
those  who  discovered  they  had  been  more  scared  than 
hurt  insisted  that  they  had  not  been  frightened  at  all. 
There  was,  however,  for  the  three  years  following, 
little  or  no  demand  for  improved  farms  in  the  older 
sections  of  the  country.  Real  estate,  generally  the  last 
thing  to  be  depressed  in  its  market  value  by  a  panic, 
is  the  last  to  be  favorably  affected  by  a  revival.  By 
'76  and  '77.  however,  the  panic  of  '73  was  in  a  great 
degree  forgotten.  The  professional  kite-flyers  were 
by  that  time  all  out  ready  to  catch  the  wind,  when  it 
should  shift  to  suit  them.  It  had  not  come  yet  with  all 
the  power  and  steadiness  desired,  but  it  was  coming, 
•and  when,  it  did  come,  the  old  boys  —  adepts  in  the 
business  —  were  very  active,  and  put  up  kites  which 
certainly  looked  well  and  soared  high  and  ultimately 
brought  much  profit  to  those  who  held  the  string. 

There,  for  instance,  were  the  great  railroad  build 
ers.  Fraud.  Ripper  and  Grab.  They  had  several  hand- 


ROBERT  BRETT  137 

some  and  profitable  kites  afloat.  They  were  the  orig 
inators  and  constructors  of  the  All-Steal  railway,  a 
road  extending  from  Jacktown  to  the  Lake.  The 
bonds  of  this  Company,  executed  with  great  artistic 
skill,  promised  a  fair  rate  of  interest,  and  were 
represented  by  Mr.  Grab,  the  financial  man  of  the  con 
cern,  to  be  peculiarly  adapted  to  the  wants  of  widows 
and  orphans,  and  of  old  gentlemen  who  had  retired 
from  active  business,  and  did  not,  therefore,  desire  to 
be  troubled  with  the  frequent  investment  of  money. 
The  bonds  issued  represented  about  three  times  the 
value  of  the  property  bonded.  Thirty-three  per  cent, 
of  the  money  derived  from  their  sale  was  used  to  con 
struct  the  road,  and  the  other  sixty-seven  went  into 
the  pockets  of  Fraud,  Ripper  and  Grab.  But  these 
honest  gentlemen,  not  satisfied  with  so  small  a  profit, 
issued  twice  as  much  stock  as  there  were  bonds,  put  it 
on  the  New  York  Stock  Exchange,  and  then  began 
to  deal  in  it  themselves.  Fraud  through  an  agent 
would  sell  a  thousand  shares  to  Ripper,  then  Ripper 
would  sell  a  thousand  shares  at  an  advance  to  Grab, 
and  by  this  time  Fraud  would  become  furious  to  buy 
back  again,  and  so  according  to  the  reports  of  the 
Stock  Exchange  there  was  wonderful  activity  in  All- 
Steal  stock.  The  price  of  it  was  rapidly  going  up. 

Soon,  little  paragraphs  appeared  in  the  news 
papers  commending  the  All-Steal  railway,  and  assur 
ing  investors  that  it  was  certain  to  pay  a  dividend. 
Then  Fraud  gave  a  half  dozen  brokers  one  hundred 
dollars  each  to  reward  them  for  sending  out  "pointers" 
to  their  customers  —  suggestions  that  it  would  be  well 
to  try  a  little  All-Steal,  as  it  was  the  most  active  stock 
in  the  market.  And  so  while  Fraud  was  selling  to 
Ripper,  and  Ripper  to  Grab,  and  a  large  business  being 


138  UNCLE  PETER  SKED 

done,  apparently,  the  newspapers  announced  the  sales 
to  an  eager  public,  and  the  stock  climbed  higher  until 
finally  honest  men  who  held  trust  funds,  bought  with  a 
view  to  pocketing  the  profits  if  they  could  sell  at  an 
advance,  and  turning  the  stock  over  to  the  widows  and 
orphans  if  they  could  not.  Rural  speculators,  also, 
began  to  dip  in  eagerly,  fearful  if  they  did  not  strike 
soon  and  boldly,  the  stock  would  get  beyond  theii 
reach  ;  and  so  the  circle  of  buyers  extended  until  finally 
Fraud  &  Co.  suddenly  let  go  and  unloaded  the  whole 
batch  of  worthless  stuff  on  to  outsiders. 

Fraud,  Ripper  and  Grab  are  worth  a  million  each. 
The  holders  of  All-Steal  stock  and  bonds,  however, 
are  just  now  in  straightened  circumstances,  and  some 
what  depressed  in  spirits.  Mrs.  Grab  has  gone  to 
Europe ;  Mrs.  Green,  who  bought  bonds,  has  not 
Mrs.  Ripper  enjoys  the  summer  at  Newport;  Mrs. 
Folly,  whose  husband  invested  in  All-Steal  stock, 
spends  the  heated  term  at  home.  The  elegant  Mrs. 
Fraud  entertains  handsomely  at  her  new  house  on 
Madison  Square,  and  is  very  generous  in  her  donations 
to  the  heathen.  Mrs*  Pigeon,  whose  thousands  went 
to  pay  for  Mrs.  Fraud's  house,  is  now  keeping  board 
ers,  and  seldom  has  anything  to  drop  into  the  contri 
bution  box.  Of  course  it  is  all  right.  If  it  were  not, 
the  law  would  take  cognizance  of  it;  respectable  peo 
ple  would  denounce  it,  and  the  churches  would  call 
attention  to  it.  Fraud  &  Co.  are  simply  remarkable 
geniuses,  great  financiers,  enterprising  gentlemen,  and 
therefore,  worthy  of  the  admiration  and  respect  of 
everybody.  Their  scheme  won ;  they  deserved  their 
good  fortune.  Let  the  tongue  of  envy  wag  if  it  will 
No  fair  man  can  blame  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Ripper  and  their 
co-partners,  male  and  female,  for  looking  out  for 


ROBERT  BRETT  139 

themselves.  The  transaction  was  strictly  lawful. 
Everybody  should  have  known  what  the  road  was, 
what  the  stock  was  worth,  and  what  security  there 
was  for  the  payment  of  the  bonds. 

The  time  for  good  kite  flying  was  rapidly  ap 
proaching,  but  not  at  hand,  when  the  affairs  of  the 
Northern  Pacific  Railway  Company  were  reorganized. 
One  of  the  features  of  the  scheme  proposed  by  the  new 
managers  of  the  enterprise  was  the  payment  of  the 
bonds  of  the  road  with  the  lands  granted  by  Congress 
to  aid  in  its  construction. 

While  patiently  awaiting  a  revival  of  business, 
Robert  Brett  had  not  only  succeeded  in  supporting 
himself  comfortably,  but  in  laying  aside  a  little  money 
from  his  earnings.  His  bank  having  resumed,  the 
drafts  on  Jay  Cooke  and  Company  were  credited  back 
to  his  account,  and  the  amount  was  now  subject  to  his 
order.  He  knew  the  character  of  every  section  of  land 
through  which  the  Northern  Pacific  road  passed ;  the 
depth  and  fertility  of  its  soil,  and  its  proximity  to 
water  were  matters  to  which  the  successful  prosecu 
tion  of  his  work  as  a  contractor  required  him  to  give 
special  attention.  When,  therefore,  the  opportunity 
to  convert  the  bonds  of  the  road  into  the  lands  of  the 
Company  was  presented,  he  at  once  exchanged  his 
one  hundred  thousand  dollars  in  bonds  at  their  par 
value,  with  the  interest  accrued  thereon,  for  choice 
sections  of  the  great  wheat  belt  of  the  Northwest. 

It  was  a  broad,  handsome  domain  he  thus  became 
the  possessor  of,  embracing  little  lakes,  patches  of 
wooded  land,  and  great  stretches  of  rolling  prairie. 
At  first  his  nearest  neighbor  was  ten  miles  away,  and 
some  ten  miles  farther  off  a  few  rougJi  houses  of  a 
prospective  city  had  been  built.  Here  and  there  along 


140  UNCLE  PETER  SKED 

the  line  of  railway,  settlers  had  within  the  past  few 
years  broken  the  soil  and  put  in  their  first  crops  at  a 
venture.  The  situation  would  have  been  a  lonely  one 
to  most  men,  but  Brett's  own  thoughts  were  excellent 
company  for  him,  and  the  long  days  of  summer  were 
even  too  short  for  all  the  work  his  busy  hands  found 
to  do. 

There  was  a  comfortable  house  to  be  erected  on 
the  wooded  shores  of  Lake  Gertrude.  There  were 
shelters  to  be  constructed  for  the  cattle  and  horses  re 
quired  to  enable  him  to  break  up  a  hundred  acres  for 
the  next  spring's  seeding.  There  was  the  wild  grass 
to  be  cut  and  cured  for  the  subsistence  of  his  live  stock 
during  the  winter.  There  were  plows,  harrows  and 
grain  drills  to  buy  and  then  to  be  cared  for.  There 
were  barns  to  be  built  for  the  storage  of  next  season's 
crops.  There  were  men  to  be  employed  to  aid  in  all 
this,  and  they  must  be  fed  and  housed.  Almost  before 
he  was  aware  of  it,  therefore,  the  summer  had  gone 
and  the  winter  come.  Good  books  do  much  to  shorten 
and  enliven  the  longest  and  dullest  months,  and  of 
these  Robert  Brett  had  brought  with  him  a  well 
selected  stock.  When  spring  arrived,  the  ground, 
broken  the  summer  and  fall  before,  was  harrowed  over 
and  then  seeded  to  wheat.  Pretty  soon  a  hundred  acres 
were  green  with  their  first  crop  of  growing  grain ;  and 
a  little  later  the  yellow  and  drooping  blades  were  ready 
to  be  harvested.  What  a  grand  crop  it  was,  and  how 
suggestive  of  the  fertility  and  value  of  the  wild  land 
about  it ! 

The  railway  officials  had  consented  to  make  a 
stopping  place  for  trains  on  Brett's  land,  and  near  his 
residence  if  he  would  erect,  for  the  accommodation  of 
the  traveling  public,  a  modest  station  house.  This  he 


KOBEKT  BRETT  141 

did  between  the  time  of  seeding  and  that  of  harvesting, 
and  now,  almost  every  day,  men  seeking  land  either  for 
speculation  or  for  settlement  would  obtain  a  glimpse 
of  Brett's  magnificent  field  of  ripening  grain,  stop  off 
to  look  the  country  over,  and  while  doing  so,  find  en 
tertainment  at  his  cabin. 

The  soil  and  climate  of  the  locality  were  especially 
favorable  for  the  growing  of  wheat.  During  the  suc 
ceeding  twelve  months,  settlers  came  pouring  in  so 
rapidly  that  Brett  was  encouraged  to  lay  out  a  town 
and  offer  the  lots  at  public  sale  to  the  highest  bidder. 
There  was  no  lack  of  buyers,  and  the  competition 
among  them  was  quite  spirited.  Thirty  days  later 
there  were  some  houses  occupied,  others  ready  for  oc 
cupancy,  and  many  more  in  process  of  construction. 
The  impression  became  widespread  that  the  town  was 
destined  to  be  an  important  city,  and  that  no  more 
profitable  use  could  be  made  of  money  than  in  purchas 
ing  lots  in  it  and  lands  about  it. 

Brett's  estimate  of  the  value  of  his  property  was 
so  moderate  he  found  no  difficulty  in  disposing  easily 
and  rapidly  of  such  portions  as  he  desired  to  part  with. 
From  the  proceeds  of  his  sales  he  was  soon  able  to 
invest  over  two  hundred  thousand  dollars  in  Gov 
ernment  Fours.  This  was  a  comfortable  sum  and  it 
left  him  free  to  take  the  world  leisurely  if  it  were  his 
choice  to  do  so.  ; 

He  had  never  been  able  to  decide  that  it  would 
be  well  to  pass  the  remainder  of  his  life  amid  the  rough 
scenes  of  a  pioneer  settlement.  No  amount  of  money, 
he  thought,  would  compensate  him  for  such  a  sacrifice. 
But  what  should  he  do  —  where  seek  the  better  life 
for  which  he  longed?  This,  in  his  leisure  moments, 
was  the  constantly  recurring  question. 


142  UNCLE  PETER  SKED 

While  sitting  in  his  cabin  door  on  a  pleasant  even 
ing  in  September,  with  the  moonlit  lake  spread  like  a 
sheet  of  rippling  silver  before  him,  the  tender  strains 
of  a  flute,  wafted  from  the  village  by  a  favorable  wind, 
fell  on  his  ear,  and  diverted  the  current  of  his  thought 
from  lots  and  lands  and  bonds  to  the  half  forgotten 
incidents  of  his  childhood.  To  the  mother  who  had 
now  been  under  the  sod  for  over  twenty  years ;  to  the 
school  house  where  his  first  lessons  were  learned ;  to 
the  creeks  where  he  had  fished,  and  the  marshes  where 
he  had  hunted ;  to  his  old  playmates ;  to  his  father,  and 
finally  to  Gertrude  Frazier.  Where  is  she  now  ?  It 
is  a  little  over  ten  years  since  they  parted.  Ten  years ! 
A  long  period  when  filled  with  disappointment  and 
suspense,  and  those  who  live  through  it  often  become 
old,  worn  and  broken.  He  was  poor  ten  years  ago.  A 
marriage  with  Gertrude  then  would  have  been  alto 
gether  to  his  advantage ;  but  she  did  not  seem  to  think 
so ;  possibly  she  did,  but  apparently  she  did  not.  Was 
:t  consideration  for  his  own  safety,  which  prompted  her 
to  bid  him  depart,  or  did  she  in  that  moment  realize 
that  her  love  for  her  own  kin  was  stronger  than  her 
regard  for  him?  Possibly  he  should  not  have  obeyed 
her  last  command  so  literally ;  perhaps  he  should  have 
communicated  with  her  since.  But  could  he,  as  an 
honorable  man,  seek  to  hold  her  to  a  compact  which 
brought  everything  to  him,  and  gave  nothing  to  her? 
The  bargain,  if  it  may  be  called  such,  was,  as  he  now 
regarded  it,  an  unequal  one.  Were  he  to  insist  upon 
its  consummation  there  would  at  least  be  ground  for  a 
suspicion  that  he  was  looking  to  her  fortune,  rather 
than  to  herself.  This  view  of  the  matter  had  been 
suggested  by  her  brothers.  To  wed  for  such  a  purpose 
would  be  robbery ;  to  be  suspected  of  entertaining  such 


EGBERT  BRETT  143 

a  thought  was  extremely  humiliating.  The  resolution 
not  to  return  until  he  could  meet  her  on  equal  terms 
with  respect  to  wealth,  had  now  governed  him  for 
years.  It  had  required  a  long  time  to  reach  the  point 
toward  which  he  had  been  struggling ;  so  long,  indeed, 
that  Gertrude  had  possibly  ceased  to  think  of  him,  and 
probably  had  formed  new  ties,  which  would  be  a  per 
petual  barrier  between  them ;  and  yet,  even  in  his  most 
despondent  moments,  he  never  cast  aside  the  license 
authorizing  them  to  marry.  It  was  the  spur  which 
had  urged  him  on  to  fortune.  Still  there  had  been 
many  times  when,  perplexed  with  doubts  and  fears, 
he  impatiently  and  angrily  declared  he  would  not 
trouble  himself  more  about  her ;  she  had  not  treated 
him  well,  and  would  have  married  him  in  spite  of  op 
position  if  she  had  loved  him  half  as  earnestly  as  he 
did  her.  But  notwithstanding  all  these  murmurings, 
his  heart,  like  the  needle  of  a  compass,  always  pointed, 
when  at  rest,  in  the  one  direction. 

The  incidents  of  their  first  acquaintance  while  at 
tending  school ;  the  slow  approaches  to  intimacy ;  the 
first  look,  word  and  act  which  suggested  love ;  the 
avowal  and  acceptance ;  the  subsequent  hostility  of  her 
father  and  brothers,  and  his  final  determination  to 
settle  the  matter  in  spite  of  their  opposition,  and  her 
timidity,  were  gone  over  a  thousand  times.  Indeed, 
the  thought  of  Gertrude  was  never  absent  from  his 
mind  for  many  hours  together,  even  when  his  business 
was  most  urgent  and  perplexing. 


XII 

RICHARD  DUNDREN 

DUNDREN'S  farm  was  put  up  at  public  sale 
for  the  second  time  the  latter  part  of  Sep 
tember,  and  the  sheriff  had  again  endorsed 
on  his  writ  of  execution,  "Not  sold  for  want  of  bid 
ders.''  Thereupon  a  new  appraisement  had  been 
ordered,  and  the  sheriff  was  now  giving  the  legal 
notice  that  the  property  would  be  offered  for  the  third 
time  on  the  twenty-eighth  of  October.  There  was 
nothing  either  of  the  realty  or  personalty  exempt  from 
execution,  and  hence  nothing  Dundren  could  dispose 
of  at  private  sale;  but  he  was  no  less  thoughtful  and 
painstaking  in  his  work  of  gathering  in  the  crops  and 
caring  for  the  live  stock,  than  if  his  labor  were  certain 
to  net  him  a  handsome  rewrard.  The  money  due  Peter 
Sked  must  be  paid.  Dundren  was  not  the  man  to  go 
through  life  shunning  his  creditors,  or  facing  them 
with  brazen  indifference.  He  felt  himself  bound,  not 
only  by  the  law,  but  by  his  own  honor,  to  pay  what  he 
agreed  to  pay,  and  as  he  agreed  to  pay  it.  He  could 
not  entertain  the  thought  of  leaving  to  his  children  the 
reputation  of  an  insolvent  debtor.  His  father  and 
grandfather  had  paid  their  debts,  and  had  been  inclined 
to  mention  it  rather  too  frequently  perhaps,  as  an  hon 
orable  thing  for  men  to  do.  In  fact,  they  had  some 
times  spoken  in  contemptuous  terms  of  certain  persons 
who  had  been  notoriously  delinquent  in  this  regard. 
There  for  instance  were  the  Blisters  of  whom  Richard 

(144) 


RICHARD  DUNDREN  145 

Dundren's  father  could  not  speak  in  gentleness.  The 
good  Mrs.  Blister  was  in  early  life  an  honest  seams 
tress,  but  her  husband  becoming  rich  by  a  fortunate 
speculation,  built  her  a  hundred  thousand  dollar  resi 
dence,  and  then  like  a  prudent  man  failed,  and,  though 
living  in  affluence,  was  so  extremely  poor  he  gave  no 
attention  whatever  to  the  demands  of  his  creditors. 
Mrs.  Blister  was  so  impoverished,  also,  by  her  hus 
band's  failure  that  she  even  declined  to  refund  to  her 
old  serving  woman  the  small  savings  of  a  lifetime 
which  had  been  deposited  with  Mr.  Blister  for  safe 
keeping,  and  so  the  broken-down  old  servant  was 
trundled  off  to  the  infirmary  to  be  supported  at  the  cost 
of  the  County. 

It  is  probable  Dundren  senior,  in  his  criticism  of 
Mrs.  Blister,  did  not  take  into  consideration  the  fact 
that  a  woman  of  her  standing  in  society  must  neces 
sarily  drive  to  church  in  a  carriage,  and  dress  expen 
sively.  It  is  probable,  also,  that  he  failed  to  remember 
that  she  had  the  poor  Mr.  Blister  on  her  hands  and 
was  in  duty  bound  to  provide  well  for  him,  and  that 
the  income  derived  from  the  one  hundred  thousand 
dollars  invested  in  seven  per  cents  which  had  been 
turned  over  to  her  with  the  house,  was  but  a  meagre 
allowance  for  so  extensive  an  establishment  as  she 
maintained.  It  may  be  true,  therefore,  that  notwith 
standing  all  the  elder  Dundren  said  to  the  contrary, 
the  courts  were  right  in  assuming  that  the  masculine 
Blister  owed  all  the  money  and  the  feminine  Blister 
owned  all  the  property.  One  can  see  very  readily,  at 
any  rate,  that  Mrs.  Blister  was  a  great  blessing  to  Mr. 
Blister,  and  that  it  would  have  been  especially  severe 
on  them  if  by  hook  or  crook  they  had  been  compelled 

10 


146  UNCLE  PETER  SKED 

to  refund  to  that  wretch  of  a  serving  woman  the  money 
due  her,  and  in  consequence  been  unable  to  spend  the 
summer  months  at  Saratoga. 

There  is  another  man,  also,  to  whom  the  elder 
Dundren  always  referred  in  words  of  bitterness.  This 
is  no  less  a  personage  than  the  pious  brother  Fleecer, 
who  carries  on  an  extensive  and  profitable  business  in 
the  name  of  Fleecer,  Agent.  Brother  Fleecer  is  the 
agent  of  sister  Fleecer,  his  \vife.  The  male  Fleecer 
some  years  ago  suddenly  failed,  and  the  female  Fleecer 
as  suddenly  became  rich.  Just  how  sister  Fleecer  got 
the  advantage  of  brother  Fleecer  on  the  tilting  board 
of  fortune,  nobody  but  themselves  can  exactly  tell ; 
but  that  it  was  done  fairly  there  need  be  no  doubt ;  at 
least,  brother  Fleecer  has  never  intimated  to  any  one 
that  sister  Fleecer  did  not  play  honestly  with  him. 
One  theory  of  the  matter  is  that  when  the  Fleecers 
were  joined  in  holy  wedlock,  some  thirty  or  forty  years 
ago,  sister  Fleecer  inherited  a  four  posted  bedstead,  a 
feather  mattress,  two  home-made  linen  sheets,  a  yarn 
coverlet,  and  a  patch-work  quilt,  the  whole  being 
worth,  at  a  liberal  estimate,  fifty  dollars.  This  of 
course  was  sister  Fleecer's  separate  estate,  and  it  was 
no  more  than  right,  therefore,  that  brother  Fleecer 
should  pay  her  for  the  property  like  an  honest  man, 
and  this  it  is  claimed  he  did.  Fifty  dollars  at  ten  per 
cent,  compounded  every  sixty  days  according  to  bank 
er's  rules,  would  in  say  forty  years  amount  to  about 
all  brother  Fleecer  had  in  his  possession  ;  and  so  he 
liquidated  the  debt  due  sister  Fleecer,  and  allowed  his 
other  creditors  to  whistle  for  their  pay. 

There  is  still  another  gentleman  of  whom  the  elder 
Dundren  used  to  speak  in  scorn,  namely,  our  venerable 
society  friend,  the  Honorable  Mr.  Gouger.  No  gen- 


RICHARD  DUNDREN  147 

tleman  dresses  better  than  Ivlr.  Gouger,  few  live  more 
luxuriously,  none  have  handsomer  pictures,  and  rarer 
books.  He  is  polite,  suave,  easy,  eminently  respecta 
ble,  the  friend  and  patron  of  everybody,  and  so  honor 
able  that  his  favorite  theme  is  honor.  How  does 
Gouger  obtain  the  money  to  supply  himself  with  all 
the  good  things  of  the  world?  By  ste — ,  no,  no, 
Gouger  would  not  steal,  for  Gouger  is  an  honorable 
man  ;  but  Gouger  will  borrow  a  thousand  dollars,  more 
or  less,  promise  to  pay  it  back  next  week  and  never 
think  of  it  again  until  his  attention  is  called  to  it  by 
the  needy  creditor.  Then  Gouger  will  regret  exceed 
ingly  that  he  has  been  so  negligent,  agree  to  call  around 
the  next  day  and  arrange  the  matter,  and  treat  his 
creditor  so  courteously  the  poor  victim  is  ashamed  of 
himself  for  having  alluded  to  a  subject  so  disagreeable, 
and  goes  off  feeling  that  Gouger  is  the  best  of  fellows, 
a  perfect  gentleman,  and  one  whom  it  is  an  honor  to 
know.  If  Gouger  looks  for  his  creditor  the  next  day 
it  is  to  avoid  him.  The  idea  of  paying  the  debt  did 
not  enter  his  head  when  he  contracted  it,  has  not  since, 
and  will  not  hereafter.  The  material  things  of  the 
Gouger  estate  belong  either  to  Mrs.  Gouger  or  the 
young  Gougers.  Gouger  himself  has  nothing  left  but 
honor,  and  he  manages  to  make  a  good  deal  out  of  it 
in  the  course  of  a  year. 

Father  Dundren  was  wont  to  say  honor  and  re 
ligion  were  admirable  qualities  in  men,  and  of  more 
value  than  diamonds ;  but  as  God  only  could  tell  the 
genuine  from  the  spurious,  it  was  unsafe  to  accept 
what  purported  to  be  either  as  security  for  a  loan.  Men 
who  pledged  their  honor  for  the  fulfillment  of  a  prom 
ise,  did  so  generally  because  they  regarded  it  as  the 
least  valuable  of  their  possessions. 


148  UNCLE  PETER  SKED 

There  had  been  no  time  during  the  last  ten  or  fif 
teen  years  when  Mrs.  Dundren  could  not  have  retired 
from  active  life  with  at  least  fifty  thousand  dollars  laid 
by  in  good  interest  paying  bonds  if  Richard,  her  hus 
band,  had  discharged  his  obligation  to  her  as  fairly  and 
liberally  as  brother  Fleecer  paid  his  debt  to  sister 
Fleecer,  and  if  Dick  Dundren  had  possessed  Mr.  Goug- 
er's  fine  sense  of  honor  Mrs.  Dundren  would  long  ago 
have  been  the  owner  of  Cherry  Farm,  and  that  precious 
old  rascal  Peter  Sked  would  have  lost  a  round  sum 
and  had  little  sympathy  from  the  people  who  knew 
him.  But  Dundren  could  not  bear  to  have  any  one 
think  he  was  indebted  to  Peter  Sked,  or  any  other  man. 
for  the  clothes  on  his  back  and  the  flesh  on  his  bones. 
It  did  not  lie  in  his  mouth  to  say  Sked's  claim  was  not 
an  honest  one.  If  there  were  any  dispute  on  this  score 
the  courts  should  settle  it.  He  should  stand  up  to  his 
contract  like  a  man,  not  dodge  out  of  it  like  a  sneak 
thief.  As  to  this  claim,  however,  there  was  no  dispute. 
The  notes  had  affixed  to  them  the  name  of  Richard 
Dundren ;  this  was  not  only  proof  conclusive  that  the 
claim  was  just,  but  the  end  of  controversy. 


XIII 

A  QUESTION  OF  IDENTITY 

CRANBERRY  County  was  at  this  time  in  convul 
sions.  The  henchmen  of  Travis  and  Popper 
were  on  the  run  night  and  day.  Money  was 
being  doled  out  by  the  candidates  somewhat  sparingly, 
but  promises  were  distributed  with  a  reckless  disregard 
of  economy.  There  were  many  desirable  offices  in 
prospect  —  post  offices  in  the  district,  and  clerkships 
at  Washington.  At  least  a  thousand  men  expected  to 
obtain  place  at  the  public  crib  if  Travis  were  elected, 
and  as  many  if  Popper  should  be  successful.  Nine 
teen  hundred  and  seventy-five  of  these  enthusiastic 
gentlemen  were  destined  to  be  disappointed,  but  as 
yet  they  had  no  suspicion  of  this  and  would  have  none 
until  their  labors  in  the  canvass  were  fully  ended. 
They  were  not  at  all  likely,  therefore,  to  relax  their 
efforts  until  the  battle  was  either  lost  or  won. 

Brother  Ebenezer  and  his  mouse  colored  mare 
were  taking  the  world,  bad  as  it  was,  with  philosophic 
cheerfulness.  In  their  numerous  expeditions  against 
the  Prince  of  Darkness,  they  never  lacked  for  forage 
and  shelter,  and  never  paid  for  either.  Indeed,  the 
Deacon  could  live  abroad  much  cheaper  than  at  home, 
and  always  kept  on  the  war  path  until  due  regard  for 
the  condition  of  his  under  clothing  compelled  him  to 
return  to  his  own  domicile. 

Colonel  Albright  had  delivered  several  very  elo 
quent  and  effective  speeches,  but  just  now  in  the  pinch 

(149) 


150  UNCLE  PETER  SKED 

ind  critical  hour  of  the  battle,  he  was  spending  alto 
gether  too  much  precious  time  at  widow  More's  cot 
tage.  Lilian's  bright  eyes  and  broad  acres  were  more 
attractive  than  even  the  applause  of  delighted  audi 
ences.  The  sun  of  popular  favor  was  shining  on  him 
and  he  must  improve  it  to  gather  in  the  harvest.  A 
month  later  he  might  not  have  a  penny  in  his  pocket, 
and  possibly  not  a  pocket  to  put  a  penny  in.  Mustard 
had  for  some  weeks  succeeded  in  either  keeping  him 
sober  or  concealing  him  when  otherwise.  The  escapade 
on  the  occasion  of  his  visit  to  Rudd's  Corners  was 
laughed  over  quietly  but  not  spoken  of  to  the  injury 
of  his  reputation.  .  So  far  as  the  people  of  Cranberry 
knew  he  was  all  he  seemed  to  be,  a  bright,  active,  rep 
utable  fellow,  who  was  likely  to  make  his  mark  in  the 
world.  Lilian  More  had  been  alarmed  by  his  behavior 
on  the  night  of  the  first  day  of  their  acquaintance,  but 
in  thinking  it  all  over  and  over  again  she  had  attributed 
his  strange  conduct  to  the  impulsiveness  of  a  loving 
heart,  and  this  solution  of  the  problem  was  not  only 
very  flattering,  but  exceedingly  gratifying  to  her. 

The  fact  of  his  being  an  eloquent  public  speaker 
was  an  interesting  theme  to  many  of  her  female  asso 
ciates  in  Cranberry.  His  bright  sayings  were  often 
quoted  in  her  hearing.  The  comments  on  his  personal 
appearance  and  prospects  were  always  favorable.  The 
possibilities  of  such  a  man  were  very  great.  It  was 
writh  a  timid,  blushing,  but  rejoicing  pride  Lilian  con 
fessed  to  herself  that  all  these  grand  possibilities  might 
be  shared  by  her.  What  splendid  visions  of  the  future 
they  suggested !  What  political  triumphs  for  him, 
and  social  triumphs  for  her!  She  had  read  of  great 
receptions  in  which  the  wives  of  prominent  men  cut 
brilliant  figures.  Might  not  she  look  forward  to  some 


A  QUESTION  OF  IDENTITY          151 

such  enviable  distinction?  But  may  be  after  all  he 
would  not  deem  a  simple  country  girl  worthy  to  share 
life  with  him ;  and  yet  he  seemed  ready  at  any  moment 
to  invite  her  to  share  it,  and  if  he  did  what  should  be 
her  answer? 

She  had  now  met  him  five  or  six  times  in  her 
mother's  house ;  never  wholly  alone  since  the  evening 
when  'Squire  Wharton  overtook  them  on  the  bridge, 
and  delighted  them  with  entertaining  stories.  She  was 
expecting  him  this  afternoon.  He  had  sent  a  note  to 
her  saying  he  would  call.  Poor  Jack  Wharton  had  not 
been  thought  of  for  weeks ;  she  had  been  contemplat 
ing  richer  things  than  it  was  possible  for  Jack  to  give. 
Let  her  acquaintance  with  the  Colonel  turn  out  as  it 
might,  the  line  fence  between  the  More  land  and  the 
Wharton's  could  now  never  be  removed. 

She  took  up  a  pen  from  the  table  before  her  and 
wrote  on  a  sheet  of  note  paper,  "Mrs.  Colonel  Al 
bright;"  "Mrs.  Lilian  Albright;"  Mrs.  Lilian  More 
Albright."  Then  tearing  the  paper  into  a  hundred 
shreds  cast  it  out  of  the  window.  She  now  went  to 
the  door  and  looked  eagerly  toward  the  village,  but 
there  was  no  one  in  sight,  and  so  she  walked  out  to  the 
gate,  then  back  to  the  house,  and  then  around  to  the 
kitchen  where  her  mother  was  paring  apples  for  the 
next  pie  baking.  Here  she  concluded  to  wait  until 
there  should  be  a  rap  on  the  door  to  indicate  that 
somebody  had  come.  The  mother  looking  up  from  her 
work,  saw  that  her  daughter  was  prepared  to  receive 
company,  and  asked : 

"Is  the  Colonel  coming?" 

"Yes,  mother." 

The  flushing  face  told  the  mother  more  than  the 
girl's  words,  but  she  had  suspected  it  before,  and  was 


152  UNCLE  PETER  SKED 

perhaps  pleased  and  flattered  to  find  she  had  guessed 
correctly.  Lilian  now  felt  quite  certain  her  mother 
understood  the  nature  of  her  regard  for  Colonel  Al 
bright,  and  approved  it.  Much  of  all  that  occurs  in  the 
family  is  fully  known  though  never  put  in  language. 
A  blush,  a  glance,  a  sigh,  often  tell  a  long  story  more 
accurately  than  it  could  be  written  out  in  detail.  Mrs. 
More  would  be  pleased  to  have  so  distinguished  and 
able  a  gentleman  as  Colonel  Albright  for  a  son-in-law, 
and  the  revelation  of  this  fact  made  the  daughter  very 
happy. 

There !  Her  quick  ear  detected  foot-falls  on  the 
walk.  The  rap  on  the  door  would  be  made  in  a  mo 
ment.  Xo!  Well,  gracious  alive,  is  he  coming  round 
to  the  kitchen?  This  is  no  place  to  receive  him,  and 
no  place  for  him  to  come. 

The  man  you  are  thinking  of,  my  girl,  is  not  com 
ing,  but  another  is.  It  is  old  Peter  Sked,  Mrs.  Dun- 
dren's  eccentric  cousin,  and  a  remote  connection,  by 
blood  or  marriage,  of  widow  More. 

"Eh.  Sally,"  said  the  old  man.  as  he  came  forward, 
"busy  at  work :  always  busy.  That's  right :  that's 
right." 

"Uncle  Peter,"  it  was  uncle  simply  by  courtesy, 
"you  take  me  by  surprise.  Lilian,  bring  out  a  chair 
for  Uncle  Peter." 

Lilian,  nodding  respectfully  to  Peter,  went  into 
the  house  for  a  chair. 

"Too  much  finery  on  that  girl,  Sally  —  that's  not 
the  way  to  dress  a  farmer's  daughter.  Sheer  waste  of 
money,  eh?" 

"Oh.  I  think  not.  Uncle  Peter,"  replied  Mrs. 
More,  laughing,  "we  are  not  poor,  and  besides,  we  have 


A  QUESTION  OF  IDENTITY         153 

rich  relations.     You'll  leave  Lilian  at  least  half  your 
fortune,  and  that'll  make  her  rich  enough." 

"May  be  I  shall,  may  be  I  shall  —  if  she's  a  good 
girl." 

"Where's  your  sister  Alice's  son,  Uncle  Peter  — 
the  one  who  was  going  to  marry  Gertrude?" 

"I  don't  know,  Sally.  I  suspect  he  took  after  his 
father  and  went  to  the  bad.  I  haven't  heard  a  word 
about  him  for  years ;  not  a  word." 

"Your  sister  Kitty  —  who  married  the  Scotchman 
and  moved  from  Cuvier  to  California,  do  you  ever 
hear  from  her?" 

"Never ;  not  for  twenty  years  —  Dod-blast  the 
Scotchman !  I  never  liked  him,  Sally,  and  was  glad 
they  went  away." 

"Well,  well,  Uncle  Peter,  I  hope  Alice's  boy  is 
alive  and  doing  well,  and  that  Kitty  has  children ;  but 
if  not,  you  must  remember  Lilian.  She  and  Helen 
Dundren  are  about  as  near  to  you  as  any  body  except 
the  children  of  your  own  sisters." 

"Dundren  shall  never  have  a  dollar  of  my  money, 
Sally  —  not  a  dollar  !" 

Lilian  now  returned  with  the  chair.  The  old  man 
had  hardly  time  to  dispose  of  his  umbrella  and  seat 
himself  when  a  rap  on  the  front  door  called  her  away 
to  welcome  and  entertain  a  more  interesting  visitor. 

It  was  Colonel  Albright.  On  entering  the  room, 
and  ascertaining  they  were  alone,  he  took  her  hand 
and  said : 

"My  dear  Lilian,  how  well  you  look.  How  lovely 
you  always  are !" 

The  girl's  head  hung  like  a  rose  overweighted  by 
dew  and  sunshine. 

"Do  you  know,  my  dear,  I  dream  of  you  by  night 


154  UNCLE  PETER  SKED 

and  think  of  you  by  day?  You  are  never  out  of  my 
thoughts,  and  never  have  been  since  I  met  you  first  on 
that  lucky  Sunday  morning." 

''Oh,  Colonel !"  exclaimed  the  blushing  girl  with 
out  daring  to  lift  her  eyes.  "Is  it  true  ?  Can  it  be  so  ?" 

The  Colonel  put  his  arm  about  her  waist,  and 
drawing  her  to  him  said  : 

"It  is ;  and  in  proof  of  it  I  ask  you  to  be  my  wife. 
Xo  man  can  offer  stronger  evidence  of  his  love  than 
this." 

The  Colonel's  statement  was  far  from  accurate, 
but  the  simple  girl  did  not  know  it.  She  was  in  a 
tumult  now  ;  her  breath  came  short  and  quick,  and  tears 
were  in  her  eyes,  but  they  were  tears  of  joy.  She  had 
won  him  and  the  future  was  full  of  splendor.  How 
very  thankful  she  should  be  for  all  this  happiness. 
How  suddenly  it  had  come,  and  how  differently  from 
what  she  had  expected.  Whether  she  walked  or  was 
carried  to  the  little  lounge  which  occupied  one  corner 
of  the  room,  she  never  knew,  but  she  found  herself 
sitting  there  with  the  Colonel's  arm  around  her  and 
her  head  resting  on  his  shoulder.  Pretty  soon  she  be 
came  aware  that  he  was  urging  her  to  fix  the  day  when 
the  marriage*  ceremony  should  take  place  —  when  he 
should  be  the  happiest  of  men ;  when  they  would  go 
off  together  and  see  something  of  the  great  world. 
There  were  many  sights  worth  seeing  in  the  large 
cities.  Theaters,  museums,  music  halls,  art  galleries, 
and  elegant  parks  —  everything  in  short  to  delight  the 
eye  and  satisfy  the  soul ;  but  even  these  were  as  noth 
ing  to  him  —  he  could  forego  them  all  and  live  hap 
pily  with  her  any  where,  in  cabin  or  wilderness. 

After  much  communing  the  day  was  fixed  upon, 
in  so  far  as  a  dutiful  daughter  could  do  it  without  first 


A  QUESTION  OP  IDENTITY         155 

consulting  her  mother.  It  was  to  be  ten  days  hence, 
if  possible.  The  girl  had  pleaded  for  further  time  to 
make  preparation,  but  the  Colonel  urged  many  good 
reasons,  apparently,  for  an  early  marriage. 

The  reader  will  say  Lilian  was  weak.  True 
enough ;  but  it  was  the  weakness  of  youth  and  inex 
perience.  She  knew  little  of  the  world ;  she  was  hon 
est  and  sincere  herself,  and  believed  others  to  be  the 
same.  She  had  in  her  the  elements  of  a  noble  wife, 
but  she  was  fluttering  now  over  the  infernal  pit,  ready 
to  drop  into  such  miseries  as  are  only  known  to  the 
damned.  Was  it  the  young  girl's  fault  that  she  oc 
cupied  this  dangerous  position,  or  the  mother's  fault, 
or  the  fault  of  the  recognized  and  accepted  customs  of 
the  country  ? 

After  a  while  when  all  her  doubts  and  fears  had 
passed  away,  and  been  succeeded  by  the  courage  which 
comes  of  assured  victory,  Lilian  asked  the  Colonel  to 
excuse  her  for  a  moment,  and  ran  to  tell  her  mother 
what  had  occurred.  She  found  old  Peter  Sked  in  the 
dining  room  and  her  mother  busily  engaged  setting  the 
table  for  the  evening  meal.  Proceeding  to  the  kitchen 
she  waited  there  until  her  mother  came  out,  and  then 
told  her  hurriedly  Colonel  Albright  had  proposed ;  that 
she  had  accepted  him,  and  if  there  were  no  objections 
to  it  they  would  be  married  the  coming  week.  The 
Colonel  had  important  business  demanding  his  pres 
ence  in  the  East,  and  if  his  going  were  delayed  it  might 
result  in  heavy  loss,  and  yet  he  was  resolved  not  to  go 
unless  he  could  take  Lilian  with  him.  The  mother 
was  somewhat  startled,  but  she  had  sense  enough  to 
know  that  great  men  always  have  important  business, 
and  if  Lilian  were  to  marry  the  Colonel  at  all,  it  was 
proper  and  right  she  should  not  for  any  trifling  con- 


156  UNCLE  PETER  SKED 

sideration  require  him  to  make  sacrifices,  especially 
pecuniary  sacrifices  which  she  supposed  in  this  case 
they  would  probably  be. 

"Yes,  yes.  If  the  Colonel  thinks  it  can  not  be 
put  off,  let  that  day  be  fixed  upon  for  the  wedding; 
but  goodness  gracious !  how  sudden  and  unexpected 
it  is!" 

"Mother,  is  Peter  going  to  stay  for  supper?" 

"Yes,  child;  you  know  he  always  does." 

"I  thought  may  be  we  ought  to  ask  the  Colonel 
to  sup  with  us." 

"So  we  should  ;  why  not?" 

''But  Peter  —  what'll  he  think  if  he  finds  Peter 
here?" 

The  widow  wras  in  doubt  for  a  moment,  but  finally 
a  happy  thought  occurred  to  her. 

"I'll  have  Peter  scrub  himself,  and  put  on  one  of 
your  poor  father's  coats.  Tell  the  Colonel  he's  an  odd 
sort  of  a  man,  but  rich  and  an  old  acquaintance  of  the 
family,  \vho,  happening  to  come  along,  stopped  for 
supper." 

It  will  be  observed  that  Mrs.  More  was  in  some 
respects  a  sensible  woman.  It  was  certain  old  Peter 
would  sometime  die,  and  possibly  he  might  remember 
her  in  his  will.  She  therefore  proposed  to  treat  him 
well  and  make  him,  in  outward  appearance,  at  least, 
a  suitable  person  to  be  presented  to  her  son-in-law 
elect. 

A  half  hour  later,  supper  was  announced  by  the 
tinkling  of  a  bell.  The  Colonel  and  Lilian  entered  the 
dining  room  together.  Peter  was  about  to  take  a  seat 
at  the  table,  when  Lilian,  with  some  slight  embarrass 
ment  said : 

"Uncle  Peter  Sked,  this  is  —  is  — 


A  QUESTION  OF  IDENTITY         157 

"Ginger!"  exclaimed  Sked  savagely.  "He's  a 
tramp  !  What's  he  doing  here  ?  Eh  ?  Damn  you,  sir, 
what  business  have  you  in  a  decent  woman's  house?" 

Ginger  was  somewhat  shaken ;  but  strong  drink 
was  the  only  thing  that  could  throw  him  entirely  off 
his  balance,  and  being  sober  to-day,  he  replied  with 
apparent  coolness : 

"Sir,  you  are  laboring  under  a  grave  mistake,  and 
are  certainly  neither  courteous  nor  complimentary  in 
the  matter  and  manner  of  your  speech." 

"Sally,"  said  Sked,  glaring  fiercely  at  the  Colonel, 
but  talking  to  the  widow,  "this  man  is  a  scoundrel, 
and  he's  here  for  no  good  purpose.  If  you  have  silver 
ware  or  money  in  the  house  send  for  a  magistrate  at 
once.  He's  a  tramp  by  profession,  and  a  thief  on  prin 
ciple." 

"Peter  Sked,"  exclaimed  the  widow,  "you  talk 
like  a  wild  man." 

"Sally  More,"  shouted  Peter,  "you're  a  fool.  This 
man's  face,  voice  and  manner  are  all  familiar  to  me. 
He's  a  common  tramp  —  a  low  vagabond.  If  he  has 
not  ruined  your  daughter,  he  will  do  it  if  he  can.  If 
he  has  not  already  robbed  you  he  will  do  it  unless  you 
call  for  help.  He's  here,  I  tell  you,  for  no  good  pur 
pose." 

"My  venerable  friend,"  replied  Ginger  with  dig 
nity,  "if  your  language  proceeds  from  a  disordered 
intellect  I  should  pity  you.  If  from  a  malicious  heart 
I  should  —  if  you  were  a  younger  man,  chastise  you. 
Being  in  doubt,  and  in  consideration  of  your  gray 
hairs,  I  propose  that  we  act  like  gentlemen,  discuss  this 
question  of  identity  quietly,  and  permit  the  ladies  to 
decide  between  us.  If  your  charges  are  true  I  am  un- 


158  UNCLE  PETER  SKED 

fit  to  be  here ;  if  false,  you  are  perhaps  not  a  suitable 
adviser  for  them." 

This  was  a  sensible  speech,  and  went  far  to  re-es 
tablish  Mrs.  More's  confidence  in  the  Colonel.  Lilian 
had  dropped  into  a  chair,  paralyzed  by  a  terrible  appre 
hension  that  there  might  be  some  foundation  of  truth 
for  Peter  Sked's  charges,  and  yet  hopeful,  nay,  trust 
ful  there  was  not,  and  that  they  were  simply  the  vaga 
ries  of  a  broken  minded  and  vicious  old  man. 

"Yo'u  face  it  out  well,  eh,"  retorted  Sked.  "Now, 
sir,  I  have  no  wish  to  do  you  harm,  but  I  have  some 
interest  in  this  family,  and  don't  want  the  daughter 
ruined  and  the  mother  robbed.  The  best  thing  for  you 
to  do  is  to  get  out.  You  have  no  business  here." 

"Thank  you,  sir,"  replied  Ginger  softly,  "I  shall 
go  whenever  Mrs.  More  and  Miss  Lilian  request  me  to 
do  so.  I  am  here  as  their  guest,  not  yours.  I  know 
them.  I  don't  know  you,  and  have  no  wish  to  make 
your  acquaintance.  Possibly  it  would  be  well  for  you 
to  act  upon  the  advice  you  have  given  me.  and  get  out 
yourself." 

1  "Sally,''   said   Peter,  turning  to  the  widow  with 
flashing  eyes,  "does  this  tramp  rule  here?    Eh?" 

Mrs.  More  stood  silent.  If  Peter's  charges  were 
false  the  man  accused  would  be  her  son-in-law ;  if  true. 
then  God  help  her  daughter.  She  was  not  ready  witted 
enough  to  decide  on  the  spur  of  the  moment  what  an 
swer  to  make  to  Sked's  question.  He  therefore  turned 
from  her  indignantly,  and  going  to  the  kitchen  picked 
up  his  hat  and  umbrella,  and  left  the  house. 

While  the  supper  was  in  progress  the  Colonel  ex 
erted  himself  to  the  utmost  to  restore  his  entertainers 
to  cheerfulness,  but  found  the  task  a  difficult  one. 
Mrs.  More  was  profuse  in  her  excuses  for  Peter.  He 


A  QUESTION  OF  IDENTITY         159 

was  old  and  eccentric ;  it  was  doubtful  if  he  were 
always  in  his  right  mind.  He  certainly  talked  like  a 
crazy  man  to-day. 

The  Colonel  expressed  the  belief  that  Peter  had 
been  sincere  enough  in  his  accusation.  It  was  simply 
another  case  of  mistaken  identity ;  such  errors  were 
occurring  constantly ;  some  of  them  were  exceedingly 
amusing.  He  had  himself  been  frequently  accosted 
by  strangers  who  had  mistaken  him  for  an  old  friend, 
and  had,  as  often,  slapped  an  unknown  person  famil 
iarly  on  the  back  supposing  him  to  be  an  intimate 
acquaintance. 

While  the  Colonel  was  on  the  alert,  filling  every 
moment  with  agreeable  speech,  Lilian  wondered  why 
he  did  not  say  something  of  his  early  life.  She  recol 
lected  now  that  he  had  not  thus  far  mentioned  the 
place  of  his  birth,  nor  made  any  reference  to  his  fam 
ily.  Had  the  omission  been  accidental?  When  sup 
per  was  over  and  they  were  again  alone  together  in 
the  parlor,  she  would  ask  him  about  his  parents,  his 
relatives  and  his  home.  Henceforth  they  would  be 
hers  as  well  as  his.  She  had  not  known  him  long, 
and  since  their  acquaintance  began  he  had  perhaps 
been  thinking  too  much  of  the  present  to  talk  of  the 
past.  It  was,  she  did  not  doubt,  all  right.  If  he  were 
a  common  tramp  his  appearance  would  indicate  it. 
Mr.  Travis  would  know  it ;  all  Cranberry,  in  fact, 
would  have  found  it  out.  Old  Peter  Sked's  statement 
must  be  a  monstrous  and  cruel  absurdity. 

A  rap  was  heard  at  the  front  door  and  Lilian  rose 
from  the  table  to  respond  to  the  summons.  The  vis 
itor  was  'Squire  Jabez  Wharton.  He  had  called  to 
have  a  little  interchange  of  views  with  Colonel  Al 
bright  on  the  political  situation.  Peter  Sked  had  stop- 


160  UNCLE  PETER  SKED 

ped  at  the  Wharton  homestead  and  dropped  a  few 
words  in  the  'Squire's  ear  which  filled  him  with  the 
liveliness  of  a  cricket,  and  the  energy  of  a  lightning 
rod  man.  Lilian's  heart  sank  in  despair  when  she  in 
vited  him  to  enter,  for  she  knew  if  the  Colonel  re 
mained  until  midnight  the  'Squire  would  stay  with 
him.  Lilian  was  right;  the  'Squire  had  come  on  pur 
pose  to  remain,  and  no  amount  of  shaking  would  suf 
fice  to  shake  him  off.  The  line  fence  might  come  down 
after  all ;  and  the  story  about  the  Hebrew  Jew  would 
be  told  if  it  took  all  night  to  tell  it. 


XIV 


AFTERMATH 

AT  this  stage  of  the  canvass  in  the  Cranberry  dis 
trict  the  candidates  may  be  likened  to  two  men 
who  had  run  a  race  through  a  sewer.  They  were 
bespattered  from  head  to  foot,  dripping  with  dirty 
water  and  reeking  with  uncleanness.  There  was  not 
an  uncontaminated  thread  in  their  clothes,  nor  an  hon 
est  and  cleanly  hair  on  their  heads,  nor  a  spot  on  their 
bodies  which  was  not  the  center  of  some  infectious  and 
deadly  poison.  Travis  was  a  monster  and  so  was  Pop 
per ;  both  had  grown  rich  by  robbery ;  both  were  liars, 
thieves,  and  drunken  debauchees,  and  both  were  now 
seeking  office  solely  to  enlarge  their  opportunities  for 
the  gratification  of  their  vicious  propensities.  In  short, 
if  the  newspapers  may  be  relied  upon,  both  men  were 
better  fitted  for  the  penitentiary  than  for  the  United 
States  Congress. 

It  was  a  close  shave  between  them,  and  until  they 
neared  the  end  they  seemed  to  be  running  neck  and 
neck ;  but  Mr.  Travis  had  this  advantage,  finally,  over 
his  competitor.  He  had  had  the  forethought  to  obtain 
a  carefully  prepared  list  of  the  "bummers,"  "dead 
beats,"  and  "gutter-snipes"  of  the  district,  and  on  the 
day  preceding  the  election  he  placed  one  thousand  new 
and  crisp  one  dollar  treasury  notes  in  the  hands  of  his 
agents  to  be  discreetly  used  on  the  morning  of  election 
day  to  buy  up  voters  who  had  the  honor  to  be  enrolled 
among  the  purchasable.  This  shrewd,  but  honest,  de- 
ii  (161) 


162  UNCLE  PETER  SKED 

vice  enabled  him  to  reach  the  goal  about  a  half  length 
ahead  of  the  panting  and  eager  Popper.  It  was  a 
magnificent  triumph  for  the  Democrats,  and  a  striking 
exhibition  of  the  capacity  of  a  free  people  for  self 
government.  The  pious  Ebenezer  congratulated  Mr. 
Travis  in  person,  and  then  sent  a  letter  of  condolence 
to  Popper.  The  sympathetic  chord  in  Ebenezer's 
bosom  was  like  the  harp  on  the  willow7,  responsive  to 
the  touch  of  every  passing  zephyr.  He  could  rejoice 
with  those  who  rejoiced,  and  mourn  with  those  who 
mourned.  He  was  also  able  to  demonstrate  that  if 
it  had  not  been  for  his  efforts  Travis  would  have  been 
defeated  ;  and  then  again  he  was  prepared  to  prove  by 
the  same  figures  that  if  he  had  not  ridden  the  county 
night  and  day  Popper's  vote  would  have  been  some 
hundreds  smaller  than  it  was ;  and  then  again  he  was 
able  by  the  same  statistics  to  satisfy  his  prohibition 
friends  that  they  were  increasing  in  strength  and  use 
fulness,  and  if  they  kept  up  the  warfare  against  ungod 
liness,  the  time  would  soon  come  when  they  would 
hold  the  balance  of  power  and  dictate  to  the  sinners 
on  all  sides  of  them,  whatever  terms  they  pleased. 
Figures  never  lie,  but  in  this  respect  they  bear  no  re 
semblance  whatever  to  Ebenezer. 

On  the  day  succeeding  the  election,  Mr.  Travis 
was  the  great  man  of  the  Cranberry  district.  He  had 
been  vindicated  and  thoroughly  cleansed  by  victory, 
and  would  soon  be  clothed  with  the  honors  of  office 
and  be  in  receipt  of  its  emoluments.  People  saw  many 
good  traits  in  him  now  which  they  had  never  observed 
before.  He  was  an  exceedingly  generous  man,  but 
modest,  and  hence  dispensed  his  charity  unostenta 
tiously  —  and  generally  to  those  who  served  him.  This 
after  all  was  the  proper  method.  Let  not  thy  left  hand 


AFTERMATH  163 

know  what  thy  right  hand  doeth.  He  was  a  broad 
minded,  liberal  statesman.  Some  telling  sentences 
which  he  had  cribbed  from  Jefferson  to  adorn  his 
campaign  speeches,  were  conclusive  proof  of  this.  He 
was  a  genial  and  courteous  gentleman,  not  too  proud 
with  all  his  honors  glowing  freshly  on  him,  to  shake 
hands  with  his  neighbors,  and  make  kindly  enquiries 
about  their  families. 

"The  baby's  doin'  finely,  thank  you,  Mr.  Travis, 
an'  Matilda  Jane  is  a  takin'  of  her  panada  regular,  an' 
will  be  glad  ter  know  you  ast  about  her,  sir." 

Having  emerged  from  the  uncertainties  of  a  polit 
ical  campaign  and  attained  the  goal  of  his  ambition, 
Mr.  Travis,  in  the  opinion  of  the  people,  was  entirely 
satisfied  and  happy.  But  this  popular  estimate  of  his 
spiritual  condition  should  not  be  accepted  as  wholly 
accurate.  Victories,  whether  political  or  military,  are 
often  only  a  little  less  disastrous  than  defeats.  In  re 
viewing  the  occurrences  of  the  past  three  months  there 
\vere  some  things  he  could  not  contemplate  with  com 
placency.  He  had  resorted  to  many  dishonest  devices 
in  order  to  achieve  success,  but  disreputable  methods 
had  long  since  ceased  to  awaken  in  him  sharp  com 
punctions  of  conscience  or  bitter  feelings  of  regret. 
What  rendered  him  uncomfortable  at  present  was  the 
enormous  pecuniary  cost  of  the  struggle  through  which 
he  had  passed.  He  had  already  expended  treble  the 
sum  covered  by  his  original  estimates,  and  there  were 
still  outstanding  a  multitude  of  claims,  the  payment  of 
which  it  was  impossible  to  avoid  without  incurring  the 
hostility  of  influential  party  leaders  and  subjecting 
himself  to  the  charge  of  meanness  and  ingratitude. 
Committees  were  sending  in  bills  for  extraordinary 
but,  as  they  asserted,  necessary  expenditures  made  in 


164  UNCLE  PETER  SKED 

his  interest.  Individuals  were  presenting  claims  for 
special  services,  rendered  in  accordance  with  what  they 
assumed  to  be  the  candidate's  directions,  either  ex 
pressed  or  implied.  Livery  men  were  deluging  him 
with  itemized  statements  of  accounts  for  carriages  sup 
plied  to  speakers  and  confidential  agents.  Newspaper 
proprietors  were  asking  payment  for  what  purported 
to  be  editorials  published  either  at  his  request  or  that 
of  his  authorized  managers.  Humane  people  were 
besieging  him  for  subscriptions  to  church  or  charity. 
Public  spirited  gentlemen  insisted  that  he  should  now 
join  them  in  their  favorite  enterprises.  "Dead  beats" 
thronged  his  office  to  remind  him  of  their  services  and 
demand  a  loan.  In  brief,  he  felt  that  he  had  been 
elected  to  distribute  what  money  he  possessed  and  all 
he  could  beg,  borrow,  or  steal,  and  was  expected  to 
do  it  without  a  moment  of  unnecessary  delay.  When 
he  thought  of  the  great  pile  of  unliquidated  bills  before 
him  and  of  the  continuous  stream  of  personal  appli 
cations  for  assistance,  he  wished  from  the  bottom  of 
his  heart  his  bitterest  enemy  had  been  the  candidate 
instead  of  himself.  But  what,  under  the  circum 
stances,  could  he  do?  They  had  all  labored  zealously 
for  his  success.  From  some  of  them  —  he  could  not 
recollect  how  many,  he  had  solicited  help.  To  others 
he  had  expressed  a  hope  that  he  might  have  an  oppor 
tunity  to  reward  them  for  their  activity  in  his  behalf. 
They  had,  as  they  thought,  made  him  a  great  man 
who  would  soon  be  in  receipt  of  a  munificent  salary. 
In  detail,  their  demands  were  comparatively  small.  He 
could  not,  therefore,  in  the  flush  of  victory  with  a  good 
grace  decline  to  justify  their  high  estimate  of  him,  and 
yet  his  fortune  was  wasting  at  a  thousand  spigots,  and 


AFTERMATH  165 

in  the  mental  panic  which  for  the  time  seized  him,  he 
felt  that  he  was  going  to  bankruptcy  on  the  run. 

While  in  this  unhappy  frame  of  mind,  he  came  so 
near  forgetting  the  dignity  of  his  position  as  to  seri 
ously  meditate  the  forcible  ejection  from  his  office  of 
two  "gutter-snipes"  who  had  called  to  boast  of  their 
political  influence  and  ask  for  small  accommodations. 
On  further  consideration,  however,  a  better  method  of 
relief  occurred  to  him.  Taking  a  light  overcoat  from 
a  closet  and  putting  on  his  hat  he  told  his  visitors  he 
had  important  business  to  attend  to,  and  hurriedly  left 
the  room.  When  he  reached  the  sidewalk  he  was  un 
decided  as  to  the  direction  he  should  take,  but  this  was 
immaterial  so  it  enabled  him  to  avoid  further  annoy 
ance.  As  he  walked  rapidly  down  the  street  the  thought 
occurred  to  him  that  it  would  be  well  to  go  to  the 
country.  By  doing  this  he  would  at  least  escape  the 
continuous  chatter  about  the  election  and  what  people 
had  done  to  insure  his  success.  Stopping,  therefore, 
at  a  livery  stable  he  ordered  a  team,  and  while  stand 
ing  at  the  door  waiting  for  it,  was  accosted  by  one  of 
his  political  friends. 

"How  air  yez.  Misther  Travis ;  an'  it's  glad  I  am 
ye  was  elected,  sor.  I  niver  worricked  in  me  loife  as 
I  did  that  day  fer  ye'r  honor,  sor.  There  were  tin 
min  a  boardin'  wid  me  at  Widdy  McGafferty's  —  tin, 
sor.  an'  sez  I,  b'ys  let's  be  afther  givin'  Misther  Travis 
a  lift,  an'  yez  got  ivery  wote,  ye'r  honor,  ivery  wote, 
sor." 

"Thank  you,  Tim ;  I  thought  you'd  stand  by  me." 

"An'  sure  I  wad,  sor,  tooth  and  toe  nail,  fer  yez, 
sor.  I  made  yez  not  less  nor  tin  honest  wotes,  yer 
honor.  Yez  may  allers  know  whar  to  foin'  Tim 
O'Rourke.  He's  a  thrue  Dimmvcrat  an'  niver 


166  UNCLE  PETER  SKED 

scratches  the  ticket  loike  some  folks,  sor  —  wad  yer 
honor  be  so  kin'  as  to  lind  a  poor  man  a  foive  dollar 
note  till  next  wake  a  Chuesday?  I'll  pay  it  back  to  yez 
prompt  on  the  day  —  foive  dollars  :  an'  sure  it's  nothin' 
to  the  loikes  o'  yez.  Yer  a  great  an'  rich  man,  yer 
honor,  an'  ud  niver  feel  it  if  yez  sulcl  niver  see  it 
agin." 

"I  haven't  that  much  with  me,  Tim  —  here  — 
here's  a  dollar  for  you;  I'm  in  a  hurry  —  Damn  that 
boy.  why  don't  he  fetch  the  team !" 

"Thank  ye,  Misther  Travis;  yez  can  hand  me  the 
other  four  ter  morrer.  if  ye's  a  moind  to,  sor.  An' 
shure  foive  dollars  is  nothin'  to  the  loikes  o'  yez  —  I 
made  yez  tin  honest  wotes,  Misther  Travis ;  tin  sor  — 

Mr.  Travis  turned  on  his  heel  impatiently  and 
shouted  into  the  stable  door : 

''Bring  out  that  team  —  hurry  up!" 

"Be  thar  in  a  minute,  sah ;  mos'  ready,  sah." 

A  shabby  genteelman  coming  up  now  laid  his  hand 
on  Mr.  Travis'  shoulder  to  attract  his  attention  from 
the  stable  boy,  and  said : 

"Xot  going  away?" 

"I've  business  in  the  country,  and  must  be  off  at 
once  —  I  should  have  gone  an  hour  ago." 

"I  shall  not  detain  you.  My  business  was  neg 
lected  during  the  canvass  and  I  am  short.  Here's  a 
note  to  the  bank  for  a  hundred  ;  lend  me  your  name  for 
sixty  days." 

"I  don't  do  that  sort  of  thing,  Filkins,  really  my 
good  fellow,  I  never  endorse  for  any  body." 

"It's  simply  a  matter  of  form,  man ;   I've   spent 

more  than  a  hundred  for  you  in  time  and  money  within 

'  the  month  —  step  into  the  office  and  write  your  name. 


AFTERMATH  167 

One  good  turn  deserves  another;  live  and  let  live's  a 
good  maxim." 

"Well,  well,  I'll  do  it  for  you,  Filkins,  but  it's 
against  the  rule  of  my  life." 

Going  into  a  little  office  which  occupied  one  cor 
ner  of  the  stable  Mr.  Travis  signed  the  note,  and  hand 
ing  it  back,  said : 

"How's  your  family,  Filkins?" 

"Well ;  much  obliged ;  good  morning." 

"Hurry  up  with  that  team,  you  black  sun  of  a  gun. 
I  can't  wait  all  day.  Do  you  hear?" 

"I's  comin',  sah ;  hosses  jus'  ready  to  buckle  to, 
sah.  Be  dar  'fore  yer  knows  it,  sah." 

When  after  a  little  further  delay  the  team  was  led 
out,  the  hostler  said  to  Mr.  Travis,  with  a  broad  grin : 

"Boss,  yer  couldn't  gib  a  nigga  a  nickle  to  buy  a 
glass  of  beer,  sah?" 

"Not  a  cent,"  said  Travis,  angrily. 

"Dat  was  my  'pinion,  boss.  Dat's  jus'  wat  I  sed, 
sah." 

"What  do  you  mean,  you  rascal?" 

"I  sed  dat  yer  couldn't,  sah,  an'  yo'  sed  yer 
couldn't,  sah,  an'  so  we  'greed  on  dat  pint  jus'  like  we 
b'longed  to  same  party,  sah  — 

Travis  had  by  this  time  taken  his  seat  in  the  buggy 
-"When  folks  'gree  'bout  de  same  pint,  sah,  dar's 
nebber  no  'casion  fer  hard  feelin's,  sah." 

"Here's  a  quarter  for  you,"  said  Mr.  Travis,  as  he 
was  driving  off ;  "catch  it !" 

The  hostler  picked  the  ra.oney  up  and  chuckling 
over  his  good  fortune,  said : 

"'Pears  dat  we  was  bofe  wrong.  I  sed  he  couldn't, 
he  sed  he  couldn't,  and  den  he  gone  and  done  it.  Hit's 
jus'  de  way  wid  dem  durned  copperhead  Dim'crats. 


168  UNCLE  PETER  SKED 

Dey  nebber  do  wat  dey  say  dey  will  — nebber.  Hit's 
a  c'lar  case.  Dey're  de  bigges'  liars  on  de  topside  de 
yearth." 

The  bracing  air  and  pleasant  sunshine  of  an  Oc 
tober  afternoon  had  a  tendency  to  revive  Mr.  Travis' 
drooping  spirits.  The  horses  were  rapid  goers,  and  as 
he  bowled  along  over  the  smooth  clay  road  his  thoughts 
were  lifted  from  the  disagreeable  groove  in  which  they 
had  been  running,  and  it  seemed  as  if  a  better  world 
were  opening  out  before  him.  He  was  indeed  about  to 
enter  upon  a  new  phase  of  existence.  The  dry  and  un 
interesting  routine  of  village  life  would  soon  be  ex 
changed  for  a  broader  and  more  exciting  round  of 
duties.  Narrow  and  homely  streets  for  wide  and  ele 
gant  avenues.  The  little  country  court  house  with  its 
professional  jurors  and  tiresome  pleadings,  for  the 
National  capitol  with  its  brilliant  speeches  and  appre 
ciative  listeners.  His  victory  was  worth  something 
after  all  —  worth  probably  all  it  cost.  Having  won  it 
might  he  not  with  confidence  seek  to  achieve  another? 
The  other  to  which  he  now  looked  forward  would  not 
only  give  him  the  loveliest  and  most  amiable  of  wives, 
but  more  than  make  good  pecuniarily  all  the  losses  he 
had  sustained.  A  life  of  celibacy  was  at  best  barren 
and  unsatisfactory.  No  home,  no  children,  none  to 
perpetuate  the  name,  and  none  to  inherit  what  might 
be  left.  It  was  a  man's  duty  to  marry.  Air.  Travis 
had  been  aware  of  this  for  years,  but  never  so  keenly 
as  now. 

When  he  drove  up  to  Dundren's  gate  he  was  re 
ceived,  after  a  fashion,  by  two  playful  dogs,  with  sono 
rous  voices,  who  sometimes  pretended  to  be  very  fierce, 
but  unconsciously  let  every  body  know  by  the  wagging 


AFTERMATH  169 

of  their  tails  that  their  ferocity  was  assumed  and  there 
fore  not  dangerous. 

"Toby!     Punch!" 

It  was  the  voice  of  their  mistress  admonishing 
them  to  be  quiet,  and  at  the  sound  of  it  they  went  re 
gretfully  back  to  the  house  as  if  called  from  the  agree 
able  duty  of  rending  Mr.  Travis  into  a  thousand  frag 
ments,  and  distributing  his  remains  broadcast  over  the 
farm.  Gertrude  put  her  hands  on  their  heads  when 
they  returned  to  her,  to  indicate  that  she  was  pleased 
to  find  them  obedient  and  merciful,  and  then  proceeded 
down  the  graveled  walk  to  meet  her  visitor  and  con 
gratulate  him  on  his  election. 

"Thank  you ;  but  don't  say  a  word  more  about  it. 
I've  heard  of  nothing  else  for  days.  I'm  out  for  a  ride  ; 
go  with  me." 

"Not  a  long  one?" 

"Short  or  long,  as  you  wish.  I've  run  away  from 
a  hundred  petty  annoyances,  and  should  prefer  never 
to  return." 

"Well,  if  you  have  been  driven  here  it  may  be  my 
duty  to  make  you  glad  to  get  home  — 

Toby  and  Punch  were  never  more  eager  to  take  a 
little  exercise  than  on  this  occasion,  and  circled  round 
and  round  the  carriage  when  it  started  in  doubt  as  to 
the  exact  wishes  of  their  mistress,  but  finally  conclud 
ing  she  would  not  positively  decline  their  protection 
and  guidance,  they  went  scurrying  down  the  road  in 
advance  of  the  team  as  if  running  a  race  in  which  the 
winner  was  to  have  five  pounds  —  of  good,  tender 
beefsteak,  and  no  bone. 

The  carriage  turned  off  the  Cranberry  road  on  to 
one  leading  in  a  northeasterly  direction  along  the  mar 
gin  of  a  brook,  and  after  perhaps  an  hour  Toby  and 


170  UNCLE  PETER  SKED 

Punch   discovered   a   pedestrian   in    the   distance   and 

i *• 

straightway  bore  down  upon  him  with  great  speed, 
and  when  they  reached  the  enemy  they  cavorted  about 
him  and  barked  loudly  and  made  furious  sallies  at  his 
shins  and  seemed  to  say,  ha !  you  old  rascallion  we've 
got  you  now !  and  then  the  beleagured  pedestrian,  as 
suming  a  defensive  attitude  drew  an  old  cotton  um 
brella  and  waved  it  threateningly,  and  finally  aimed  a 
vicious  blow  at  Toby  which  he  evaded  by  a  marvelous 
leap ;  but  nothing  daunted,  and  warmly  supported  by 
the  faithful  Punch,  he  rallied  again  and  made  another 
bold  charge  on  the  foe,  but  like  a  prudent  warrior, 
halted  just  before  he  got  within  reach  of  the  enemy's 
weapon,  wheeled,  retired,  and  came  on  again,  and  fin 
ally,  by  a  quick  maneuver  got  in  the  enemy's  rear  and 
compelled  him  to  change  front,  and  so  the  battle  pro 
gressed  until  the  buggy  came  near  enough  to  enable 
Gertrude  to  interfere  in  the  interest  of  peace. 

"Down  Toby  !  Out  Punch  !  Oh,  you  mischiev 
ous  dogs." 

Obedient  to  the  commands  of  their  mistress  the 
jolly  dogs  abandoned  the  game  at  once,  and  went  gal 
loping  down  the  road  in  search  of  other  adventures. 

Sked  was  too  busy  condemning  all  dogs  to  eternal 
condemnation  to  observe  and  recognize  the  occupants 
of  the  carriage. 

"They  drive  a  good  team,  dod-blast  'em,  but 
they'll  may  be  see  the  time  when  they'll  wish  they  had 
gone  afoot,  and  kept  fewer  dogs." 

Let  us  hope  not,  Sked.  It  would  do  you  no  harm 
to  wish  them  well.  Indeed,  it  might  do  that  stony 
heart  of  yours  much  good  to  grow  soft  enough  to  give 
cordial  greeting  to  those  you  meet.  If  there  be  a 
future  for  the  human  soul  the  time  is  near  when  the 


AFTERMATH  171 

kindly  thoughts  and  esteem  of  others  will  be  precious 
to  you.  What  music  it  would  be  to  the  .listening  spirit 
to  hear  people  say  : 

"How  generous  and  gentle  old  Peter  was,  and 
how  attentive  to  the  wants  of  those  around  him.  His 
kindness  to  others  made  him  happy,  and  the  recollec 
tion  of  his  good  deeds  makes  our  lives  more  cheerful." 

"But  suppose  death  ends  us,  egad,  of  what  use 
then  would  these  good  thoughts  be?" 

"If  death  means  annihilation.  Sked,  of  what  use 
is  gold  and  all  your  pinchings?" 

"I've  won  the  game  I  played  at." 

"True,  but  it  was  a  poor  game  at  best,  and  the 
winnings  of  no  more  value  to  you  than  dust.  Go  to, 
old  man !  You  took  the  wrong  chute  in  youth,  and 
have  done  nothing  worth  the  doing.  Even  Gertrude 
Frazier's  dogs  are  making  better  use  of  their  advant 
ages,  are  happier  in  life  and  will  be  more  regretted 
by  good  folks  when  dead." 

When  on  their  return,  Mr.  Travis  assisted  Ger 
trude  from  the  carriage  at  Dundren's  gate,  the  sun  had 
disappeared,  and  the  west  was  glowing  with  long  yel 
low  and  crimson  streamers.  Was  the  scene  before  her 
suggestive  of  that  brilliant  life  of  gaiety  and  fashion 
to  which  she  had  been  invited? 

In  the  evening  Airs.  Dundren  and  Gertrude  were 
sitting  on  opposite  sides  of  a  little  table  busy  with 
needle  work  and  so  thoroughly  occupied  by  their  own 
thoughts  that  the  silence  had  for  some  time  remained 
unbroken.  Married  women  have  the  sense  to  discern 
many  things  invisible  to  mortals  of  less  experience, 
and  at  length,  as  if  referring  to  a  question  which  Ger 
trude  was  silently  discussing,  Mrs  Dundren  said : 

"Pardon  me  —  you  should  accept." 


172  UNCLE  PETER  SKED 

Looking  up  with  a  smile  and  heightened  color 
Gertrude  answered : 

"I  don't  know." 

A  long  silence  ensued,  but  Mrs.  Drunden  had  not 
abandoned  the  subject. 

"He's  wealthy,  the  foremost  gentleman  of  the 
County ;  I  can  see  many  things  in  the  new  life  which  I 
think  would  be  attractive  to  you." 

To  this  there  was  no  reply,  and  after  a  long  pause 
Mrs.  Dundren  continued : 

"If  Robert  were  living  and  faithful  you  would 
have  heard  from  him." 

Gertrude's  head  bent  still  closer  to  her  work ;  the 
ruddy  tinge  disappeared  from  her  cheeks,  and  her 
voice  trembled  as  she  answered  : 

"It  would  seem  so." 


XV 

KITTY  ROSS 

DUUGALD,  Gertrude  Frazier's  eldest  brother,  was 
an  invalid,  Malcolm,  the  next  in  birth,  was 
sleeping-  comfortably  in  his  grave  on  Sand  Ridge, 
sent  thither  by  strong  drink  some  forty  years 
sooner  than  nature  intended  him  to  go,  and  if  the 
thrifty  farmers  of  Cranberry  thought  of  Archie,  the 
youngest,  at  all,  they  probably  thought  of  him  as  one 
who  was  by  this  time  similarly  settled.  But  notwith 
standing  any  cunning  speculations  as  to  his  fate  which 
may  have  been  entertained  by  his  old  neighbors,  Archie 
was  still  above  ground  and  likely  to  remain  there  for 
some  time  to  come.  The  fact  is,  after  years  of  idle 
ness,  debauchery  and  wandering,  he  had  been  brought 
to  a  full  halt  on  the  golden  shores  of  the  Pacific.  His 
little  stock  of  money  was  gone,  his  health  broken,  his 
constitution  shattered,  and  \vhile  in  this  condition  the 
very  devil  got  hold  of  him,  and  kicked  him  hither  and 
yon,  and  dragged  him  through  sewers  of  vileness,  and 
buffeted  him  to  such  an  extent  that  there  was  scarcely 
anything  of  the  man  left.  Weak  of  body,  imbecile  of 
mind,  homeless,  penniless  and  utterly  wretched  —  a 
mere  rag  of  humanity,  indeed,  he  ceased  to  afford  even 
his  satanic  majesty  amusement,  and  so  after  getting 
him  kicked  out  of  a  low  dive,  and  seeing  him  nicely 
located  on  the  curbstone  with  a  battered  face  and 
broken  rib,  the  fiend  turned  from  his  victim  to  attend 
to  more  important  business,  thinking,  doubtless,  if 

(173) 


174  UNCLE  PETER  SKED 

there  was  anything  still  left  in  Archie  Frazier  worth 
shaking,  he  could  return  at  his  own  convenience  and 
rattle  him  again.  But  when  the  fiend's  back  was 
turned,  and  while  Archie  lay  unconscious,  an  ambu 
lance  was  driven  up  and  what  little  remained  of  him 
was  flung  into  it  and  carted  off  to  the  hospital.  And 
so  through  a  broken  rib,  a  bruised  face,  and  an  un 
conscious  brain  he  escaped  from  satan  and  fell  into  the 
hands  of  the  Sisters  of  Charity. 

I  shall  not  stop  to  tell  you  just  how  Archie  de 
meaned  himself  during  the  days  which  immediately 
followed.  How  often  he  cried  out  that  he  was  dying 
of  thirst  and  must  have  whiskey ;  nor  how  he  abused 
and  slandered  the  patient  white-hooded  nurse  who  had 
him  in  charge.  The  poor  fellow  was  delirious,  and  if 
the  fiend  had  been  standing  by  the  sick  man's  bedside 
he  would  have  laughed  outright  and  flourished  his  tail 
in  triumph  at  Archie's  wild  speeches  and  profane 
words ;  but  happily  the  gentle  faced  woman  who  waited 
on  the  suffering  sinner  was  very  watchful  and  tender, 
and  with  perhaps  a  tear,  much  fingering  of  her  rosary, 
and  moving  of  thin  white  lips  in  prayer,  she  made  it 
impossible  for  satan  to  approach  her  patient. 

After  many  days  Archie  awoke  in  his  right  mind, 
and  was  surprised  to  find  himself  between  clean  sheets 
and  in  a  comfortable  room,  and  was  furthermore  as 
tonished  to  behold  two  sympathizing  blue  eyes  looking 
tenderly  into  his.  There  w7as  still  a  craving  within 
him  for  something  he  did  not  see,  and  now  hardly 
dared  to  ask  for ;  but  finally  the  desire  augmented  and 
became  so  persistent  that  he  ventured  in  the  gentlest 
of  tones  to  say: 

"My  good  woman,  couldn't  you  give  me  a  little 
whiskey  —  just  a  drop  ?" 


KITTY  ROSS  175 

Satan's  enemy  smiled,  then  turned  to  a  small  stove 
on  which  some  broth  or  gruel  was  kept  warm,  and  put 
ting  a  few  mouthfuls  of  food  in  a  bowl,  added  to  it  the 
least  mite  of  whiskey,  and  then  fed  it  to  him.  This 
afforded  such  temporary  relief  to  the  sufferer  that  his 
attention  was  diverted  from  his  stomach  to  the  frac 
tured  rib. 

Finally,  after  some  months  of  severe  distress  dur 
ing  which  his  gentle  nurse  was  unwearying  in  her  de 
votion,  and  constant  in  her  admonitions,  Archie's  crav 
ing  for  strong  drink  disappeared  so  far  as  to  afford 
him  an  opportunity  to  think  continuously  of  other 
things,  of  better  things,  of  the  miserable  and  shameful 
life  he  had  led,  of  the  good  mother  and  father  who 
were  sleeping  on  Sand  Ridge ;  of  the  devil's  own  time 
he'd  had  of  it  thus  far  in  life,  and  then  he  resolved  that 
he  would  do  better.  Oh,  he  had  abundant  time  to 
think  and  resolve,  for  after  he  had  so  far  recovered 
as  to  leave  his  bed  there  were  weeks  of  feebleness  and 
weariness,  in  which  there  were  many  fearful  twitches 
of  the  muscles,  and  heavy  blows  of  the  re-awakened 
conscience  to  remind  him  of  his  years  of  idleness,  dis 
sipation,  and  sin.  But  he  was  thoroughly  sober  now, 
and  help  him  God,  he  would  keep  so  to  the  end.  Yes, 
there  was  a  God !  He  had  never  realized  this  truth 
so  forcibly  as  since  he  had  seen  these  patient,  self-sac 
rificing  women,  bend  uncomplainingly,  and  unremit 
tingly,  and  without  visible  reward,  to  their  work  of 
mercy. 

After  awhile  he  was  able  to  take  little  strolls  about 
the  city.  He  could  pass  a  grog  shop  now  without 
longing  to  go  in.  This  was  a  hopeful  sign  and  made 
him  confident  the  future  would  be  an  improvement  on 
the  past.  Then  he  began  to  do  odd  chores  for  the  sis- 


176  UNCLE  PETER  SKED 

ters.  and  then  to  go  out  and  work  a  little,  still  making 
the  hospital  his  home.  In  time,  when  health  was  fully 
restored,  he  obtained  a  position  as  porter  in  a  railway 
office,  bade  his  benefactresses  good  bye,  and  com 
menced  his  new  life  in  earnest.  He  was  a  man  of  gen 
tlemanly  instincts,  good  address  and  sprightly  intel 
lect.  Such  men  do  not  go  long  unobserved  in  a  new 
country  where  changes  occur  rapidly  and  new  enter 
prises  and  increasing  business  demand  additional  help 
ers.  In  the  course  of  a  few  years  Frazier  was  pro 
moted  from  one  position  to  another  until  he  finally  be 
came  the  lost  car  man  of  the  Union  Pacific  Railway. 
He  was  on  business  connected  with  the  road  when  he 
met  Robert  Brett  in  the  depot  at  Chicago.  His  mis 
sion  was  too  urgent  then  to  admit  of  a  visit  to  Cran 
berry,  but  he  did  not  care  any  way  to  return  to  his  old 
home  until  he  had  accomplished  something  in  life.  The 
future  looked  fair  to  him.  He  entertained  no  hope  of 
acquiring  great  wealth,  but  a  modest  competency  he 
felt  quite  sure  was  within  his  reach ;  and  it  is  probable 
he  would  have  achieved  it  but  for  an  incident  which 
will  now  be  chronicled. 

While  looking  up  and  down  the  land  for  lost, 
strayed,  or  disabled  cars  —  cars  needlessly  detained  at 
unimportant  stations  or  side-tracked  with  many  others 
of  various  roads,  and  hence  unemployed — he  ran  across 
old  John  Ross,  of  San  Francisco,  a  master  builder 
of  the  Union  Pacific  Railway ;  and  when  this  venerable 
mechanic  ascertained  that  Archie's  family  name  was 
Frazier.  he  looked  him  over  kindly  with  his  gray,  deep- 
set  eyes,  and  then  asked  if  he  were  of  Scottish  descent. 
Being  answered  in  the  affirmative,  he  made  further  in 
quiry  and,  to  his  great  joy,  found  Archie  was  a  Lan 
arkshire  Frazier.  Having  known  the  Scottish  branch 


KITTY  ROSS  177 

of  the  family  well  in  his  boyhood,  and  being  fond  of 
talking  of  his  early  days,  and  reviving  old  memories, 
he  made  Archie  promise  to  call  at  his  home  on  the 
coming  Tuesday,  when  they  would  both  be  in  San 
Francisco,  and  take  dinner  with  him. 

When  Tuesday  came  Archie  took  a  street  car  and 
went  out  to  John  Ross's  comfortable  residence,  and 
was  received  with  great  cordiality,  and  while  the  mas 
ter  builder  was  talking  about  Lanarkshire  and  his 
young  days  and  old  neighbors,  and  dwelling  with 
special  emphasis  on  the  respectability  of  the  Fraziers, 
his  daughter  Kitty  entered  the  room,  and  with  a  be 
coming  blush  mantling  her  round  cheeks,  was  intro 
duced  to  Archie. 

This  young  lady  was  the  picture  of  innocence, 
health  and  beauty,  but  alas !  she  was  as  obstinate  as  a 
spoiled  child,  and  as  likely  to  have  her  own  way  in 
everything  upon  which  she  set  her  heart,  as  any  only 
heir  of  a  fond  father  ever  was.  And  before  the  dinner 
was  fairly  over  she  made  up  her  mind  she  would  have 
that  lost  car  man,  or  perish  in  the  attempt.  No  one, 
to  look  at  her,  would  have  suspected  this  blushing, 
round-cheeked  and  brown-eyed  young  damsel  of  en 
tertaining  any  such  diabolical  scheme  for  the  enslave 
ment  of  man ;  but  appearances,  as  we  'know,  are  often 
deceptive,  and  they  were  never  more  so  than  in  this 
particular  case. 

From  this  day  on,  her  subtle  brain  was  constantly 
working  toward  the  end  suggested,  and  her  honest 
father  aided  unwittingly  in  the  execution  of  her  plans. 
Invitations  to  dine  went  frequently  to  the  unsuspect 
ing  victim,  and  the  cunning  minx  played  her  little 
game  so  well  that  before  the  poor  lost  car  man  was  at 


178  UNCLE  PETER  SKED 

all  conscious  of  his  peril,  he  was  too  far  gone  to  be 
saved,  and  popped  the  question  so  plump  and  fair  that 
Kitty  Ross  attempted  to  faint  and  drop  into  his  arms. 
She  was  too  healthy  a  girl,  however,  to  execute  the 
first  part  of  this  maneuver  naturally,  but  she  did  suc 
ceed  in  the  second,  and  Archie,  losing  his  good  sense 
temporarily,  gave  to  his  fair  conqueror  what  seemed 
to  the  common  understanding,  a  series  of  old  fashioned 
hugs,  such  as  our  ancestors  used  to  indulge  in,  but 
which,  in  these  latter  and  better  days  have  become 
almost  wholly  obsolete.  In  brief,  the  man  was  so  be 
witched  by  this  imp  of  furbelows,  bangs,  ribbons  and 
roses,  he  seemed  totally  unaware  that  he  was  as  badly 
lost  as  any  car  he  ever  hunted  for. 

When  the  honest  old  master  builder  ascertained 
what  Kitty  was  up  to,  and  that  he  was  now  likely  to 
have  two  children ;  instead  of  lifting  the  roof  off  of 
his  house  by  a  cyclone  of  indignation,  as  any  sensible 
father  would  have  done,  he  simply  patted  his  daughter 
on  the  cheek,  affectionately,  and  said : 

"I  think  ye  ha'  doon  weel,  my  bairn.  Thae  mon 
cooms  o'  a  glide  family." 

Two  months  after  the  first  kiss  was  given,  Archi 
bald  Frazier  was  married  to  Katherine  Ross,  and  old 
John  Ross  had  so  much  confidence  in  his  son-in-law, 
he  gave  a  business  block  in  San  Francisco  to  his 
son-in-law's  wife,  with  a  provision  in  the  deed  that  at 
her  death  it  should  descend  to  the  heirs  of  her  body. 
With  an  income  of  ten  thousand  a  year  at  her  disposal, 
Mrs.  Kitty  now  picked  up  the  man  she  had  captured, 
and  carried  him  off  in  triumph  on  a  wedding  tour. 

As  the  old  master  builder  stood  in  the  doorway  of 
his  comfortable  home  with  moist  eyes  on  the  day  of 
their  departure,  he  said  to  them  in  tremulous  tones : 


KITTY  ROSS  179 

"If  ye  gang  sae  far  as  Lanarkshire,  speer  oot  Jem 
Scobie  tat  keeps  thae  ale  house  in  Dungleton,  an'  gie 
him  a  five  pun  note  ta  wet  thae  \vheestles  o'  my  ole 
neebors  wi'.  Min'  ye,  Kitty,  they're  mos'ly  pore  folk 
tat  knew  me  i'  thae  ole  time  ;  treat  'em  kin'ly,  lass,  treat 
'em  kin'ly." 

"Xever  fear,  father,"  Kitty  replied,  as  she  put  her 
arms  around  the  old  man's  neck  and  kissed  him ;  "we'll 
have  all  Dungleton  to  dinner,  and  when  the  health  of 
John  Ross  is  proposed,  Archie  shall  respond  so  elo 
quently,  Dungleton  will  shout  itself  hoarse  in  honor  of 
her  absent  son.  Oh,  we'll  treat  'em  well !" 

And  so  it  happened  that  on  an  October  morning, 
as  Archie  Frazier  and  his  wife  were  going  eastward, 
they  got  off  the  train  at  Cranberry  station.  It  would 
be  difficult  to  describe  Mrs.  Kitty's  elegant  traveling 
dress,  and  if  it  were  described,  readers  a  thousand 
years  hence  might  smile  at  \vhat  their  deteriorated 
tastes  conceived  to  be  the  ridiculousness  of  her  costume 
and  might  even  go  so  far  as  to  question  the  veracity 
of  the  historian.  Let  it  content  the  present  generation, 
therefore,  to  know  that  Mrs.  Kitty  Frazier  was  no 
whit  behind  the  times  either  in  the  material  or  fashion 
of  her  apparel.  Her  husband,  too,  was  the  well  attired, 
alert  man  of  business,  who  speaks  authoritatively,  acts 
decisively,  and  wastes  no  time  on  inconsequential 
things.  Those  who  knew  him  once  as  a  rollicking 
blade,  often  wholly  drunk,  and  never  entirely  sober, 
had  to  look  twice,  and  then  be  called  by  name  before 
they  could  believe  he  was  a  phase  of  the  man  they 
knew.  What  a  contrast  he  was,  indeed,  to  the  former 
Archie  !  This  Archie  might  be  a  millionaire,  a  senator, 
anything  within  the  reach  of  man.  The  other  was  a 
worthless  profligate  and  spendthrift.  This  one  bore 


180  UNCLE  PETER  SKED 

himself  with  dignity,  spoke  in  gentle  but  decisive 
tones ;  the  other  was  a  staggering,  ill-tempered 
brawler.  "Well,  well,  so  this  is  Archie,  old  Dougald 
Frazier's  son,  we  never  thought  he'd  turn  out  like 
this  —  never."  And  he  never  would,  my  friends,  if 
he  had  not  turned  whiskey  out  and  come  down  to  inex 
pensive  habits,  plain  living,  and  wholesome  food.  Yes, 
there  was  still  something  more  than  this  needed  to 
make  him  what  he  is,  to-wit :  the  thinking  of  good 
thoughts,  and  the  looking  up  to  heaven,  instead  of 
thinking  bad  thoughts,  and  looking  down  to  hell. 

ArcHie  was  a  no  greater  surprise  to  others  than 
to  himself.  We  rarely  know  what  good  metal  there  is 
in  men  until  it  is  hammered  over  and  over,  then  we 
often  find  that  what  we  at  first  took  for  brass  is  pure 
gold.  Sometimes  this  discovery  is  made  quite  late  in 
life,  and  very  often  men  are  knocked  about  for  years 
and  almost  killed  before  it  is  ascertained.  A  hot  fire 
and  many  heavy  blows  are  required  to  convert  the 
rough  iron  ore  into  a  keen  blade  ;  and  so  of  God's  ham 
mering,  it  is  always  for  good  ends,  and  it  is  not  His 
fault  if  the  material  does  not  come  out  of  the  forge  a 
thing  of  utility  and  beaut}'. 

It  was  soon  known  to  all  Cranberry  that  Archie 
Frazier  had  returned,  bringing  with  him  a  handsome 
wife,  and  that  he  seemed  sober,  rich,  prosperous  and 
happy.  Nobody  could  understand  how  all  this  had 
come  about,  and  to  none  was  the  mystery  more  insolu 
ble  than  to  the  few  blear-eyed,  ragged  and  limp  human 
wrecks,  who,  in  the  old  time  had  been  his  boon  com 
panions.  How  shame-faced  and  uneasy  they  were  in 
his  presence.  How  suggestive  he  was  of  what  they 
might  have  been.  Alas !  their  own  hearts  told  them 
what  they  were.  He  had  been  rising;  they  had  been 


KITTY  ROSS  181 

falling.  He  had  years  of  plenty  and  happiness  before 
him ;  they  had  nothing  but  pinchings  and  wretched 
ness.  Is  it  too  late  to  make  the  change  he  made?  No, 
not  too  late ;  it  is  never  too  late  to  seek  to  do  better, 
but  it  takes  a  strong  will  to  sever  the  old  ties  and  con 
quer  the  old  appetites.  For  the  weak  and  irresolute 
fool  there  is  no  hope ;  but  victory  is  always  within 
reach  of  the  brave  and  determined. 

A  pair  of  handsome  bays  attached  to  an  open  car 
riage,  dashing  around  the  corner,  now  halted  in  front 
of  the  Cranberry  hotel.  Mrs.  Kitty  came  tripping 
down  from  the  room  where  she  had  re-arranged  her 
toilet,  with  her  bangs  in  order,  her  back  hair  nicely 
dressed,  and  her  cheeks  glowing ;  stepping  out  on  the 
pavement  she  was  about  to  be  assisted  into  the  vehicle 
by  her  husband,  when  a  hearty  slap  on  his  shoulder 
made  him  turn  round.  There,  with  hand  extended, 
and  a  smile  all  over  his  broad  face,  stood  Ben  Hood. 

"Why,  Ben."  exclaimed  Archie,  "I'm  glad  to  see 
you.  Kitty  —  my  wife,  Mr.  Hood." 

Mrs.  Kitty  put  her  little  plump,  cool  gloved  hand 
into  Ben  Hood's  great  fist.  It  was  a  nice  kind  of  hand, 
such  a  hand,  in  brief,  as  an  able  bodied  young  man 
might  hold  all  day,  without  getting  at  all  tired,  and 
Ben  Hood  shook  it  and  then  shook  her  husband's,  and 
then  expressed  the  pleasure  he  felt  in  meeting  them, 
and  the  hope  that  they  would  drive  out  and  dine  with 
him  at  an  early  day,  and  bring  Gertrude,  and  Dougald 
with  them.  The  Fraziers  and  Hoods  had  been  neigh 
bors  for  many  a  year.  Their  farms  were  not  far  apart, 
and  Ben  Hood  had  known  Archie  when  the  latter  was 
a  toddling  boy. 

While  they  were  talking  of  old  times  and  mutual 
acquaintances  the  village  people  gathered  around  and 


182  UNCLE  PETER  SKED 

shook  hands  with  Archie,  while  others  gazed  admir 
ingly  on  Kitty.  The  belief  was  general  that  Archie 
had  "struck  it  rich"  on  the  golden  shores  of  the  Pa 
cific,  and  then  had  married  the  only  daughter  of  a 
bonanza  king,  and  that  he  and  Her  Royal  Highness, 
the  Princess,  having  grown  weary  of  palatial  halls, 
and  the  pomp  and  ceremony  thereof,  «were  taking  in 
the  rougher  phases  of  life,  just  for  the  fun  of  the 
thing,  you  know,  and  not  because  they  had  to.  This 
theory  was  good  enough,  as  nearly  true  as  such  imag 
inings  generally  are,  and  would  have  suited  Kitty  to  a 
dot.  The  fact  is,  the  master  builder's  handsome 
daughter  was  never  happier  than  now.  This  thing  of 
being  a  married  woman  was  no  great  hardship  after 
all.  Oh,  she  could  shoulder  its  responsibilities !  No 
body  need  have  any  misgivings  on  that  score  —  not 
at  all. 

Pretty  soon  they  bade  that  crochety  and  most  un 
reasonable  of  men,  Ben  Hood,  good  morning,  and 
went  bowling  over  a  smooth,  clay  road  towards  Dun- 
dren's.  If  the  driver  of  the  rapid  going  bays  had  had 
eyes  in  the  back  of  his  head  he  would  have  been  aston 
ished,  and  perhaps  shocked,  to  find  the  princess  wink 
ing  at  her  husband  and  going  so  far  in  this  play  of  the 
eyes  as  to  assume  the  appearance  of  a  cross-eyed 
woman,  and  then  he  would  have  been  dumbfounded 
to  see  the  faces  she  made,  and  to  hear  the  little  snatches 
of  song  she  hummed  softly,  and  to  see  the  way  she 
caught  her  husband's  index  finger  and  doubled  it  up 
to  make  him  tell  whom  he  loved  best.  In  short,  there 
was  much  behavior  of  this  sort  most  unbecoming  a 
lady  who  had  the  reputation  in  Cranberry  of  being  the 
daughter  of  a  bonanza  king. 

The  distance  from  Cranberry  to  Cherry  Farm,  to 


KITTY  ROSS  183 

a  newly  married  couple  on  a  pleasant  October  day,  is 
quite  short,  so  short,  indeed,  that  when  the  carriage 
came  to  a  full  halt  at  Dundren's  gate,  Mrs.  Kitty  was 
greatly  surprised,  and  insisted  the  place  they  had 
started  for  was  still  miles  away. 

Archie  sounded  the  knocker  on  Dundren's  door, 
and  pretty  soon  it  was  opened  by  a  little  maiden  whose 
big  blue  eyes  doubled  in  size  when  she  saw  Kitty. 

''Is  Mr.  Dundren  at  home?"  he  asked. 

''He's  on  the  farm,  some  where,  sir  —  not  in  the 
house.  I  think  if  we'd  ring  the  bell  he'd  come  in." 

"Mrs.  Dundren  and  Miss  Frazier?" 

"Oh,  yes,  sir;  will  you  please  come  in?  I  —  I  — 
almost  forgot  to  ask  you  to  come  in  —  walk  into  this 
room.  I'll  tell  mamma  and  cousin  Gertrude. 

Having  shown  the  callers  into  the  best  room  and 
asked  them  to  be  seated,  Mrs.  Dundren's  youngest 
daughter  ran  off  to  tell  her  mother  and  cousin  there 
was  the  loveliest  lady  in  the  parlor  she  ever  set  eyes 
on.  Such  a  bonnet!  such  splendid  back  hair!  such 
eyes !  such  an  elegant  dress !  Gracious,  but  she's  nice. 
And  so  she  is,  my  child.  Mrs.  Kitty  Frazier  is  all 
your  fancy  paints  her,  and  a  little  more.  While  your 
back  is  turned  this  lively  young  wife  is,  by  queer  de 
vices  and  strange  antics,  trying  to  provoke  her  hus 
band  to  kiss  her,  and  the  poor  man,  driven  to  desper 
ation,  finally  does  as  she  wishes.  But  now,  hearing 
footfalls  in  the  hall,  there  is  a  sudden  change  in  her 
appearance  and  demeanor.  She  becomes  at  once  the 
pink  of  propriety  and  the  picture  of  demureness ! 

Gertrude  Frazier  entered  the  room  expecting  to 
meet  people  from  Cranberry,  or  possibly  from  a  more 
distant  town.  May  be  a  call  of  inquiry  ;  possibly  some 
body  to  look  over  the  farm  with  a  view  to  purchasing 


184  UNCLE  PETEK  SKED 

it.  Archie  and  his  wife  rose  to  meet  her ;  she  was  quite 
sure  she  had  never  seen  them  before,  and  yet  there 
was  something  in  the  face  and  bearing  of  the  gentle 
man  not  wholly  strange. 

"Good  morning,"  she  said. 

The  gentleman  looked  at  her  steadily  with  the 
faintest  suggestion  of  a  smile  flickering  on  his  face,  but 
made  no  response,  and  so  Gertrude  with  a  little  flush 
mantling  her  fair  face,  turned  to  the  lady  and  said : 

"Mrs.  Dundren  will  be  here  in  a  moment ;  please 
be  seated." 

Finding  himself  unrecognized,  Archie  said : 

"Gertrude,  this  is  Kitty,  my  wife.  Don't  you  know 
me,  sister?" 

"Oh !  Archie,  Archie,"  she  cried,  and  in  an  instant 
her  arms  were  about  his  neck,  and  she  was  sobbing 
with  thankfulness  and  joy.  When  she  had  in  some 
measure  recovered  from  the  first  shock  of  surprise,  she 
turned  and  embraced  his  wife,  but  could  hardly  trust 
her  senses  even  then,  and  so  holding  a  hand  of  each 
stood  looking  at  them  with  tears  streaming  down  her 
face. 

In  the  afternoon,  while  Kitty  and  the  younger 
members  of  Mr.  Dundren's  family  were  out  among  the 
barns  and  sheds  inspecting  the  cows,  calves  and  sheep, 
Archie  and  Gertrude  were  standing  together  on  the 
lawn. 

"I  fear  I  assisted  in  doing  you  a  great  injury, 
sister,"  he  said  regretfully. 

"Why  do  you  think  so,  Archie  ?" 

"Have  you  ever  seen  Robert  or  heard  from  him 
since  — " 

She  looked  up  with  reddening  face  and  answered : 

"No." 


KITTY  ROSS  185 

"Your  estimate  of  him  was  more  accurate  than 
mine." 

"What  do  you  know  of  him?" 

"Not  much.  I  met  him  at  Chicago,  three  years 
ago." 

"He  is  still  living,  then?" 

"At  that  date,  certainly.  He  impressed  me  as  be 
ing  a  man  of  good  character,  good  habits,  and  great 
ability.  He  is  evidently  one  whom  any  woman  might 
be  proud  of  as  a  husband." 

"Does  he  reside  in  Chicago?" 

"I  do  not  know.  I  met  him  accidentally  at  the 
station,  and  had  barely  time  to  ask  his  forgiveness." 

"Did  he  make  no  allusion  to  the  past?" 

"He  asked  if  I  had  heard  from  Cranberry  re 
cently  ;  but  I  had  not  and  so  told  him.  I  am  quite  sure 
we  did  you  a  great  wrong." 

"Perhaps  not  —  possibly  it  was  well  for  him  and 
for  me.  We  were  young  then.  He  is  probably  mar 
ried  and  settled  now.  I  should  have  heard  from  him 
if  he  had  not  been.  Heaven  only  knows  what  happen 
ings  are  for  the  best.  I  am  glad  you  think  well  of 
him." 

When,  in  the  evening,  Gertrude  retired  to  her 
room  she  did  not  at  once  seek  repose.  Her  thoughts 
were  busy  with  the  communication  Archie  had  made 
respecting  Robert.  Her  faith  in  his  fidelity  up  to  this 
hour  had  continued  unshaken.  Even  Mrs.  Dundren's 
suggestion  of  a  day  or  two  ago  had  failed  to  excite  a 
suspicion  as  to  his  constancy.  She  thought  she  knew 
him  well — better  than  any  body  else;  and  even  now, 
after  Archie  had  assured  her  he  was  living,  and  ap 
parently  in  independent  circumstances,  she  found  it 


186  UNCLE  PETER  SKED 

difficult  to  believe  he  had  been  recreant  to  their  mutual 
pledge. 

For  ten  years,  she  had  to  all  intents  and  purposes, 
considered  herself  a  married  woman ;  not  free  to  think 
of  another  alliance  even  if  inclined  to  do  so.  His  pro 
longed  silence  was  a  grievous  mystery  to  her,  still  she 
knew  how  proud  he  was  and  attributed  it  to  a  senti 
ment  of  delicacy  growing  out  of  the  inequality  of  their 
fortunes.  Indeed,  she  recollected  only  too  keenly 
how  her  brothers  had  taunted  him  with  his  poverty, 
and  accused  him  of  a  desire  to  enrich  himself  by  mar 
riage.  She  had  concluded,  therefore,  that  when  he 
succeeded  in  winning  a  modest  competency,  he  would 
come  back  again.  What  she  had  herself  written  to  him 
in  the  excitement  and  terror  of  the  day  when  they  were 
together  last,  she  did  not  know ;  but  she  felt  quite  sure 
nothing  had  passed  between  them  to  indicate  a  de 
sire  for  final  separation.  The  predominating  thought 
with  her  on  that  occasion  had  been  fear  for  his  per 
sonal  safety.  He  was  eager  and  resolute  enough 
then,  and  not  easily  deterred  from  the  execution  of  a 
purpose  upon  which  he  had  set  his  heart.  What  had 
since  occurred  to  effect  a  change  in  him?  Had  he 
met  one  who  suited  his  fancy  better?  Had  his  larger 
experience  obliterated  the  impression  of  a  youthful  at 
tachment  ?  Had  he  become  absorbed  in  money  making 
and  oblivious  to  other  things?  Chicago  is  but  twelve 
hours,  by  rail,  from  Cranberry  —  simply  a  day  or 
night's  journey.  If  he  had  taken  the  trouble  to  make 
inquiry  he  must  know  she  was  still  unmarried.  She 
had  been  ten  long  years  in  making  the  discovery  that 
the  man  she  trusted  was  unfaithful  to  her.  Henceforth 
her  thoughts  must  find  new  channels.  Does  he  fancy 
she  has  been  rendered  unhappy  and  perhaps  inconsol- 


KITTY  KOSS  187 

able  by  his  desertion?  Has  it  been  manly  of  him  to 
treat  her  so  ?  Does  he  forget  she  accepted  him  without 
thought  of  his  poverty?  Does  the  fact  that  she  has 
adhered  to  him  so  long  gratify  his  vanity  and  lead 
him  to  conclude  that  he  is  superior  to  other  men? 

There  were  at  first  tears  in  Gertrude's  handsome 
eyes  and  keen  sorrow  at  her  heart ;  but  the  tears  were 
brushed  away  impatiently,  and  anger  bid  fair  to  over 
whelm  her  sorrow.  As  she  cast  about  in  her  own 
mind  for  some  opportunity  to  assert  herself  and  show 
indifference  to  the  false  lover  who  might  be  drawing 
some  measure  of  satisfaction  from  a  belief  in  her  fealty 
to  him,  she  thought  of  Mr.  Travis.  She  did  not  love 
him,  but  she  could  make  him  a  faithful  wife.  Her 
marriage  to  him  would  not  pass  unnoticed  by  the  world 
at  large.  A  life  in  Washington  would  bring  her  in 
contact  with  many  interesting  people.  It  was  some 
thing  to  be  the  wife  of  a  congressman,  and  to  be  priv 
ileged  to  attend  the  brilliant  receptions  at  the  Capital. 
It  may  be  after  all,  Robert  Brett  would  not  long  have 
occasion  to  flatter  himself  that  she  had  lost  so  very 
much  in  losing  him. 


XVI 

JACK  WHARTON 

WHILE  the  good  people  of  Cranberry  town  had 
been  absorbed  in  speculation  as  to  the  result 
of  the  election,  and  later  still  while  the  per 
sonal  friends  of  Air.  Travis  were  rejoicing  over  his 
success  and  discussing  interesting  incidents  of  the  cam 
paign,  quiet  preparation  was  being  made  at  Mrs. 
More's  cottage  for  Lilian's  wedding.  The  statement 
of  Colonel  Albright  as  to  his  home  and  family  had 
been  accepted  in  full  faith  by  those  most  interested 
in  the  matter.  The  accusations  of  Peter  Sked,  being 
now  regarded  as  simply  the  vagaries  of  an  unbalanced 
mind,  Lilian  and  her  mother  were  disposed  to  re 
proach  themselves  for  having  been  disturbed  by  them 
in  the  least.  Here,  they  had  unconsciously  argued, 
was  a  young  and  handsome  man  associating  with  the 
best  people  of  the  county,  making  eloquent  speeches 
to  large  audiences,  holding  a  place  in  public  estimation 
second  only  to  the  candidates  themselves.  The  idea 
that  there  could  be  anything  in  the  previous  life  of 
such  a  gentleman  of  which  his  friends  need  be  ashamed 
was  simply  preposterous.  Men  of  sullied  reputations 
did  not  thrust  themselves  into  the  eye  of  the  world 
by  flaming  placards,  and  live  on  intimate  terms  with 
prominent  statesmen.  On  the  contrary,  they  naturally 
sought  obscurity  and  endeavored  to  steal  through  life 
unobserved.  No,  no;  the  Colonel  was  still  the  Prince. 
More  tender  and  condescending  indeed  than  Lilian's 
(188) 


JACK  WHAKTON  189 

earlier  dreams  had  pictured  him.  With  his  Royal 
Highness  it  was  her  glorious  destiny  to  walk  hand  in 
hand  beside  still  waters  and  in  perpetual  sunshine. 
At  thought  of  the  delightful  prospect  the  pulsations  of 
her  young  heart  quickened,  her  blood  thrilled  pleas 
antly,  and  her  cheeks  assumed  the  tint  of  the  moss  rose. 

If  poor  Jack  Wharton  could  see  her  now  while 
she  is  making  preparation  for  this  royal  journey,  he 
would  be  amazed  by  her  loveliness.  Nothing  so  beau 
tifies  humanity  as  love.  At  its  touch,  hard  lines  dis 
appear,  the  flesh  softens,  the  eyes  brighten,  the  face 
glows  and  the  step  becomes  elastic.  It  renders  the 
homely  handsome,  the  handsome  beautiful,  and  the 
beautiful  angelic,  and  for  them  the  world  becomes  a 
paradise  where  the  soul  finding  all  it  longs  for,  is  never 
weary  and  always  happy. 

Lilian  was  at  her  mother's  gate  looking  westward. 
The  sun  was  setting  and  the  great  bank  of  clouds 
away  off  beyond  Cranberry  showed  peaks  of  crimson, 
flakes  of  gold  and  large  areas  of  fleecy  whiteness.  The 
sky  never  appeared  so  beautiful  to  her  before ;  but 
gorgeous  as  the  sunset  was  it  did  not  wholly  occupy 
her  thoughts ;  she  was  thinking  also  of  the  Prince, 
and  almost  expected  to  see  him  step  out  of  the  clouds 
arrayed  in  purple  and  spangles  to  greet  her  as  the 
Queen  of  his  heart. 

The  Colonel  had  been  absent  for  a  few  days.  He 
would  return  that  evening;  to-morrow  was  the  day 
fixed  upon  for  the  marriage  and  their  departure. 
While  Lilian,  occupied  by  her  own  pleasant  thoughts, 
was  looking  dreamily  towards  the  village,  Jack  Whar 
ton.  coming  from  the  opposite  direction,  stopped  and 
startled  her  by  saying  abruptly,  and  with  downcast 
look : 


190  UNCLE  PETER  SKED 

"Lilly,  I  want  to  tell  you  something,  and  —  and 
—  am  afraid  may  be  I  oughtn't  to  —  the  fact  is,  I 
don't  know  what  to  do  about  it." 

Jack  was  evidently  in  earnest.  Lilian  looked  at 
the  embarrassed  and  awkward  young  man  for  a  mo 
ment  soberly  enough,  and  then  her  fair  face  lighted 
up,  and  with  a  little  laugh  she  answered  softly : 

"Don't  do  anything,  Jack  —  I  think  that  is  best 
when  one's  in  doubt." 

"May  be  —  I  wish  I  knew,  for  Lilly,  it  concerns 
you  much." 

The  girl  was  quite  sure  now  she  had  correctly 
guessed  the  purpose  of  Jack's  visit.  She  had  once 
thought  of  him  as  a  lover,  but  that  was  long  ago,  cer 
tainly  never  since  the  lucky  hour  when  she  first  met 
the  Prince.  As  the  awkward  country  boy  stood  before 
her,  downcast  and  ill  at  ease,  she  could  not  help  con 
trasting  him  with  the  self-asserting  and  confident  man 
she  proposed  to  marry,  and  congratulating  herself  on 
her  great  good  fortune.  She  did  not  doubt  that  Jack 
was  about  to  propose,  and  was  somewhat  interested 
to  know  just  how  the  bashful  fellow  would  succeed 
in  making  the  avowal,  but  she  replied  to  him  by  say 
ing: 

"If  the  subject  is  disagreeable  to  you.  Jack,  let  it 
pass — for  the  present,  at  least.  Your  folks  are  all 
well,  I  hope?" 

He  took  no  notice  of  her  inquiry,  but  stood  look 
ing  at  her  with  an  expression  of  anxiety  and  doubt. 

"Lilly,"  he  said,  "I  wish  somebody  else  would  do 
what  —  " 

Lilian  now  laughed  outright,  and  said  quickly : 

"May  be  somebody  else  has." 


JACK  WHARTON  191 

Jack  Wharton's  face  brightened  in  an  instant  and 
he  replied : 

"If  so,  Lilly,  it's  all  right  —  all  right.  You  don't 
know  how  the  thing  has  troubled  me,  and  how  doubt 
ful  I  was  as  to  what  to  do,  and  how  you'd  take  it,  but  I 
thought  if  certain  reports  were  true  you  should  know 
it,  and  while  the  information  might  be  disagreeable 
to  you  it  would  be  less  so  than  what  might  follow  if 
you  didn't  know  it.  I  thought,  you  see,  it  wasn't 
known  to  anybody  much  as  yet.  Indeed,  I  thought 
I'd  got  onto  it  accidentally  myself,  but  I'm  glad  to  find 
you're  ahead  of  me,  and  it  don't  annoy  you,  and  the 
reports  about  the  marriage  are  false,  and  you  don't  care 
for  him." 

The  girl  had  grown  deathly  pale  during  this  long 
speech ;  at  its  conclusion  she  cried  with  a  quavering 
voice : 

"For  mercy's  sake,  John  Wharton,  tell  me  what 
you  mean  by  all  this?  What  have  I  to  do  with  the 
reports  you  speak  of?" 

"Why,  Lilly,"  Jack  answered  softly,  "folks  said 
you  were  about  to  marry  the  man  Albright." 

"And  why  shouldn't  I,  if  I  want  to,  and  he  is 
willing,"  Lilian  retorted  angrily. 

The  light  went  out  of  Jack  Wharton's  face,  and 
he  leaned  against  the  fence  as  if  he  had  suddenly 
grown  weak  and  perhaps  speechless. 

Lilian  continued : 

"Who  can  say  anything  against  Colonel  Albright, 
a  man  who  did  service  in  the  war,  and  who  stands 
high  here  and  at  his  own  home?  Who  dare  say  any 
thing  against  him  or  his  family?  Has  that  crazy  old 
man  Peter  Sked  been  filling  your  ears  with  foolish 
stories?  Good  evening,  John  Wharton." 


192  UNCLE  PETER  SKED 

Lilian  turned  abruptly  and  haughtily  away,  but 
before  she  had  gone  far  Jack  Wharton  found  his  voice 
and  the  courage  of  desperation. 

"For  goodness  sake,  Lilly,  come  back.  There 
must  be  some  terrible  mistake.  Let  us  understand  each 
other,  at  any  rate.  If  I  am  wrong,  I  shall  be  glad  of 
it,  for  it  will  be  good  for  you ;  I  hope  I  am.  I  have 
no  grudge  against  Colonel  Albright,  and  no  wish  to 
harm  him." 

The  girl  returned  and  standing  face  to  face  with 
Jack  Wharton,  the  fence  between  them,  said  with  flash 
ing  eyes  and  a  voice  full  of  reproachful  bitterness : 

"Well,  what  did  old  Peter  say?" 

"I  don't  know ;  I've  not  seen  him,  but  two  men  are 
in  hiding  at  our  house  awaiting  the  Colonel's  return 
on  purpose  to  arrest  him." 

The  girl  was  trembling  now  in  fear  and  weakness, 
her  face  bloodless ;  clutching  the  fence  with  both  hands 
for  support  she  looked  appealingly  to  Wharton. 

"I  accidentally  found  out  who  they  were  and  why. 
they  were  in  hiding  this  afternoon  —  not  an  hour  ago. 
They  say  the  men  known  here  as  Albright  and  Win- 
ship  are  escaped  convicts,  for  whose  recapture  a  large 
reward  is  offered.  They  intend  to  seize  one  of  them 
at  your  house  to-night,  then  go  to  Cranberry  and 
take  the  other.  I  overheard  them  talking  about  the 
matter  with  father.  One  of  the  detectives  is  a  short, 
heavy-set  fellow,  with  a  brutal  face  and  a  stiff  leg.  I 
thought  you  would  be  hurt  to  be  mixed  up  in  the  affair, 
and  so  come  to  tell  you.  If  the  Colonel  was  to  escape, 
few  persons  would  know  even  that  you  knew  him,  and 
all  would  conclude  the  report  as  to  your  marriage  was 
idle  talk." 

Lilian's  head  dropped  until  it  rested  on  her  hands, 


JACK  WHARTON  193 

and  she  was  sobbing-  violently.  Feeling  that  he  was  in 
some  way  the  cause  of  all  her  trouble,  Jack  said  en 
couragingly  : 

"Take  heart,  Lilly.  The  detectives  may  be  mis 
taken  in  the  men." 

The  suggestion  revived  her  instantly ;  straighten 
ing  up  she  cried : 

"They  are  mistaken !'' 

"I  hope  so,"  replied  Jack;  "the  Colonel  will  know. 
If  I  could  see  him  in  time  I'd  tell  him,  and  if  the  man 
we  hope  he  is,  he'll  stay ;  if  not,  he'll  may  be  get  away. 
What  shall  I  do?" 

"Do  nothing/'  said  the  girl  firmly.  "Do  nothing. 
They  are  wrong;  you  are  wrong.  The  men  who  as 
sume  to  be  detectives  may  themselves  be  convicts. 
They  may  be  trying  to  deceive  your  father  in  order 
to  rob  him.  He  says  himself  cheats  and  bad  men 
always  call  on  him  before  trying  any  where  else.  Go 
home !  quick !  you  may  be  needed  there,  and  I  want  to 
be  alone." 

The  young  man  did  not  venture  to  reply,  but  turn 
ing  from  her  instantly,  walked  towards  his  father's 
house,  and  soon  disappeared  in  a  bend  of  the  road. 

Lilian  now  went  in,  put  on  her  cloak  and  hat, 
and  coming  out  again,  set  off  at  a  brisk  gait  toward 
Cranberry.  She  must  be  the  first  to  impart  this  start 
ling  information  to  the  Colonel.  She  knew  the  detec 
tives  were  mistaken ;  still,  if  they  were  to  make  the 
arrest  it  would  be  the  source  of  annoying  gossip,  inter 
fere  with  the  wedding,  postpone  the  Colonel's  visit 
East,  and  so  result  in  loss  to  him.  He  had  had  much 
to  say  of  important  business  demanding  his  attention. 
It  was  this  which  induced  her  mother  to  consent  to 

13 


194  UNCLE  PETER  SKED 

an  immediate  marriage.  Perhaps  the  Colonel  could 
at  once  satisfy  the  detectives  —  if  indeed  they  were 
detectives  —  that  he  was  not  the  man  they  sought. 
This  was  a  cheering  thought.  The  best  thing  for  him 
to  do  was  to  hasten  to  'Squire  Wharton's  and  let  them 
know  they  had  been  deceived.  He  could,  if  need  be, 
call  on  Mr.  Travis  to  vouch  for  him.  He  could  refer 
them  to  his  rich  and  well  known  family  in  Philadel 
phia.  He  could  by  wire  obtain  evidence  of  his  good 
character  from  his  old  comrades  in  arms.  He  was 
personally  acquainted  with  General  Grant,  and  had 
stood  side  by  side  with  Sheridan  in  the  great  battle 
of  Winchester.  Indeed,  he  was  on  intimate  terms  with 
very  many  of  the  distinguished  soldiers  and  statesmen 
of  the  country,  and  she  could  hardly  repress  a  smile 
when  she  thought  of  the  good  joke  he  had  put  on  the 
great  Mr.  Elaine  when  they  were  campaigning  to 
gether  in  the  State  of  Maine.  Oh,  it  would  be  easy 
enough  for  the  Colonel  to  prove  —  but  may  be  after 
all  —  the  girl  staggered  under  the  doubt  which  for  a 
moment  came  uppermost  in  her  disturbed  mind.  But 
no ;  it  could  not  be ;  he  would  not  so  deceive  her.  He 
could  not  do  it,  loving  her  as  he  did,  and  knowing  the 
intensity  of  her  love  for  him.  It  may  be  that  Peter 
Sked  had  been  instrumental  in  putting  the  detectives 
on  the  Colonel's  track.  He  was  a  malicious  old  man, 
and  certainly  very  angry  when  he  left  her  mother's 
house.  He  would  not  hesitate  to  do  a  wicked  act  or 
tell  a  false  story  to  humiliate  and  annoy  one  against 
whom  he  had  conceived  a  petty  spite.  A  tramp!  what 
a  senseless  and  crazy  whim !  Do  tramps  take  part 
conspicuously  in  political  campaigns?  Do  they  dine 
with  distinguished  statesmen?  Do  they  wear  swords 
and  epaulettes  and  spurs  in  war,  and  wield  great  in- 


JACK  WHAKTON  195 

fluence  over  men  in  peace  ?  Nonsense !  Old  Peter's 
mind  was  never  strong,  and  latterly  he  has  become  a 
raving  maniac.  He  is  to  blame  for  all  this.  He  has 
been  telling  false  and  slanderous  stories,  but  when  the 
detectives,  if  they  should  prove  to  be  detectives,  are 
boldly  confronted  by  the  Colonel,  and  discover  their 
mistake  they  will  gladly  enough  acknowledge  them 
selves  in  the  wrong  and  humbly  sue  for  pardon. 

The  night  had  shut  down  quickly.  When  she 
reached  the  bridge  the  horizon  before  her  had  lost  all 
its  glory  and  she  saw  nothing  there  but  a  great  mass 
of  black  and  threatening  clouds.  Stopping  here  she 
peered  eagerly  toward  the  village,  but  in  the  darkness 
could  discern  little  save  the  gray  line  of  the  dusty  clay 
road.  After  a  while,  however,  she  heard  the  sound  of 
voices,  and  pretty  soon  saw,  indistinctly,  the  figures 
of  two  men  coming  from  the  direction  of  the  town. 
To  avoid  being  seen  she  stood  close  behind  one  of  the 
braces  of  the  bridge.  Daylight  would  have  revealed 
her  presence  instantly,  but  in  the  darkness  she  was  not 
likely  to  be  observed.  The  men  stopped  near  the  cen 
ter  of  the  bridge,  and  Lilian  recognized  the  Colonel's 
voice,  as  he  said  to  his  companion : 

"Mustard,  you  are  always  in  a  panic.  There's  no 
danger  man.  See  that  you  get  off  at  eight.  It  is  about 
seven  now,  so  you  have  no  time  to  lose.  I'll  meet  you 
on  the  arrival  of  the  evening  train  of  Friday,  and  play 
fair  with  you.  Good  bye." 

The  two  men  separated,  the  one  to  retrace  his 
steps,  and  the  other  to  walk  briskly  on  toward  Mrs. 
More's.  The  girl  could  not  understand  why  the  per 
son  addressed  as  Mustard  should  always  be  in  a  panic, 
nor  what  the  danger  was  to  which  the  Colonel  had  re 
ferred.  They  had  perhaps  been  discussing  business 


196  UNCLE  PETER  SKED 

matters  in  which  they  were  mutually  interested,  and 
possibly  the  more  cautious  partner  was  troubled  with 
apprehensions  of  loss.  But  Lilian  had  not  time  for 
much  reflection.  When  the  stranger  was  at  a  safe 
distance,  she  left  her  place  of  concealment,  and  run 
ning,  overtook  the  Colonel.  He  was  somewhat  startled 
by  her  sudden  and  unexpected  appearance,  but  recov 
ering"  himself  instantly,  said  in  a  cheerful  tone : 

"Hello,  darling,  did  you  spring  from  the  ground 
like  a  flower?  Come,  now,  this  is  the  heartiest  com 
pliment  you  ever  paid  me.  It  shows  you  were  impa 
tient  to  see  me.  my  dear." 

The  Colonel  put  his  arms  around  her^  and  was 
about  to  go  further  in  his  demonstrations  of  affection, 
but  struggling,  she  freed  herself,  and  said  hurriedly: 

"I've  something  important  to  say  to  you.  I  know, 
of  course,  there's  no  truth  in  the  story,  still  you  should 
know  of  it.  Let's  go  back  to  the  bridge  again,  it  is 
very  dark  here  in  the  shadow  of  the  fence  and  elder 
brush." 

"Of  course,  of  course,  my  dear,  there  or  here,  or 
any  where  is  the  same  to  me  when  you  are  by  my  side, 
the  bridge  is  a  good  trysting  place  for  lovers.  I  hope 
our  w*edding  is  not  to  be  postponed  —  that  would 
break  my  heart ;  come,  now,  don't  tell  me  anything  half 
so  terrible,  my  darling." 

When  they  had  reached  the  bridge,  Lilian  said  to 
him  in  low  and  somewhat  husky  tones : 

"Colonel,  I  was  told  to-night  —  " 

"That  the  gentleman  you  are  about  to  marry  is 
not  always  temperate  —  that  he  has  been  known  to 
take  a  little  wine  at  odd  times,  but  my  dear,  there  is 
something  better  now  before  me.  I  should  be  bad  in 
deed,  if  I  turned  from  your  sweet  lips  to  even  the 


JACK  WHAKTON  197 

choicest   wine.     Come,   now,  you   must  not  deny  me 
longer." 

She  did  not.  She  perhaps  hoped  to  come  more 
easily  to  the  communication  she  had  to  make  if  she 
were  at  once  to  accord  him  the  privileges  of  an  ac 
cepted  lover.  She  did  not  believe  the  horrid  story,  and 
vvhy,  therefore,  should  she  hesitate? 

"Now,  darling,"  he  said,  drawing  her  to  him  as 
he  leaned  against  the  railing  of  the  bridge,  "now  that 
I  know  you  love  me  still,  I  can  bear  the  terrible  story 
you  have  come  to  tell :  but  there  must  be  no  postpone 
ment  of  the  wedding." 

"There  are  two  strangers  at  'Squire  Wb.ar- 
ton's  — 

"Rook  agents  or  lightning  rod  men?"  the  Colonel 
interjected  with  a  laugh. 

"No  —  Jack  says  they  have  come  to  arrest  you  — 
so  he  told  me  not  an  hour  ago." 

The  Colonel  withdrew  his  arms  from  her  at  once, 
but  she  was  too  eager  to  tell  her  story  to  notice  this. 

"When  they  have  seized  you  they  will  go  to  Cran 
berry  and  take  Mr.  Winship." 

The  Colonel  was  silent  for  a  moment,  and  then 
with  a  voice  unnaturally  calm,  asked : 

"What  have  I  done  to  offend  these  men  —  why 
should  they  seek  to  arrest  me  ?" 

"Jack  says  the  men  claim  you  are  —  are  —  an 
escaped  convict ;"  she  was  crying  now.  "I  —  I  —  told 
him  —  it  could  not  be  so." 

"Do  they  propose  to  make  the  arrests  to-night?" 

"So  I  understood  Jack  to  say.  Of  course,  they  are 
mistaken  —  T  —  I  —  told  Jack  they  were." 

"And  so  they  are,  my  darling.  You  are  right. 
You  are  always  right.  I  shall  face  them  and  the 
world." 


198  UNCLE  PETEK  8KED 

"Oh,  I  was  sure  you  would  —  I  told  Jack  you 
would,"  cried  the  happy  girl.  "Now,  Colonel,  I 
thought  as  I  came  along  it  would  be  a  grand  thing  if 
you  were  to  go  right  up  to  'Squire  Wharton's  house 
and  let  these  strangers  see  that  they  have  been  deceived 

—  that  you  were  not  the  man  they  are  looking  for,  and 
then  the  'Squire  and  Jack  would  know  they  had  been 
wrong  in  suspecting  you,  and  then  mother  would  not 
hear  anything  of  it.  and  the  whole   thing  would  be 
ended  at  once,  and  not  talked  about.     Would  not  this 
be  a  good  plan?" 

"Splendid  —  excellent,  my  dear ;  why  you  have 
the  head  of  a  statesman.  If  I  had  considered  the  mat 
ter  for  a  full  month,  I  could  not  have  hit  upon  a  better 
way  to  settle  it,  and  avoid  all  scandal." 

"Well,  let's  go  at  once,"  she  said  eagerly.  "I 
will  walk  with  you  to  'Squire  Wharton's  gate.  Indeed, 
if  you  wish  me  to  I'll  go  into  the  house  with  you.  It 
will  be  amusing  to  see  these  chop-fallen  detectives 
who've  been  sneaking  around  our  house  for  days  after 
the  wrong  man." 

"You  are  right,  my  darling;  you  shall  accompany 
me  and  see  the  fun." 

"And  Jack  —  Jack  will  know  at  once  I  was  right 

—  that  I  knew  you  better  than  he  did;  but  in  justice 
to  Jack,  I  should  tell  you  he  meant  well  to  you  and 
to  me  — " 

"I  am  very  much  obliged  to  Jack,  my  darling, 
he's  a  growing  youth,  and  will  get  to  be  a  man  if  he 
lives  long  enough.  I  predict  that  Jack  will  make  his 
mark.  I  am  quite  sure  his  father  always  does  so  when 
he  signs  a  promissory  note.  I  shall  remember  Jack 
gratefully,  my  dear." 


JACK  WHARTON  199 

''But,  Colonel,  I  fear  we  are  wasting  time.  Let's 
go  to  'Squire  Wharton's  as  soon  as  possible.  Shall 
we  not  start  at  once?" 

"Would  it  not  be  well  to  proceed  deliberately, 
my  dear  ?  It  is  still  early ;  have  you  the  little  watch 
your  mother  gave  you?  If  so,  I'll  strike  a  match  and 
ascertain  exactly  what  time  it  is  —  I  have  the  utmosc 
confidence  in  your  watch,  and  yet  I  must  confess  when 
I  am  with  you  it  cuts  the  hours  pretty  short." 

Taking  the  watch  from  her  pocket  Lilian  handed 
it  to  him.  The  wind  put  out  the  first  match  lighted, 
and  he  said  if  she  would  remove  the  chain  from  her 
neck  he  could  stoop  sufficiently  to  get  the  railing  of 
the  bridge  between  the  match  and  the  wind,  and  meet 
with  better  success  next  time.  She  did  as  he  requested, 
and  after  striking  a  light  he  announced  to  her  that  it 
was  twrenty-five  minutes  after  seven,  and  added : 

"The  watch  will  be  safer  in  my  pocket  until  we 
get  to  your  mother's  house,  than  in  yours,  my  dear. 
I'll  carry  it  for  you.  Oh,  we  have  plenty  of  time. 
Half  past  seven  is  rather  early  to  make  a  call ;  you 
must  learn  to  adapt  yourself  to  fashionable  hours." 

Having  disposed  of  the  watch  and  chain,  the  Col 
onel  drew  the  girl  to  him  again,  but  her  thoughts  were 
evidently  elsewhere.  She  was  eager  to  have  Jack 
Wharton  and  his  father  know,  beyond  a  peradventure, 
that  Colonel  Albright  was  an  innocent  and  honorable 
man,  ready  to  face  any  body  at  any  time  and  in  any 
place.  They  had  been  cruelly  unjust  to  think  so 
meanly  of  him ;  to  entertain  for  one  moment  the  ugly 
thought  that  he  was  an  escaped  felon,  an  outcast  with 
out  home  and  family,  a  fugitive  from  justice,  drift 
ing  about  the  world  under  an  assumed  name. 


200  UNCLE  PETER  SKED 

"The  Wharton's  are  not  fashionable  people,  Col 
onel,  and  farmers  keep  early  hours.  It  will  take  some 
time  to  go  there.  I  think  it  would  be  well  to  start  at 
once." 

"In  a  little  while,  my  dear,  in  a  little  while ;  the 
whole  evening  is  before  us.  The  'Squire  and  Jack  and 
the  detectives  will  not  mind  the  delay  — 

They  were  standing  near  the  middle  of  the  bridge. 
The  sound  of  a  footfall  was  now  heard  on  the  eastern 
end  of  it.  Pushing  the  girl  from  him  violently  the 
Colonel  ran  at  the  top  of  his  speed  for  a  few  rods  then 
abandoned  the  road  and  disappeared  in  the  shadow  of 
the  trees  which  lined  the  margin  of  the  river.  Lilian, 
surprised,  dumbfounded,  crushed,  staggered  to  the 
railing  and  clutching  it  to  keep  from  falling,  began  to 
sob  and  moan  as  if  her  heart  would  break.  Finally 
recognizing  Jack  Wharton,  who  had  stopped  before 
her,  she  seized  his  arm  convulsively  as  if  impelled  by 
mortal  terror,  and  the  two  started  homeward. 

They  had  passed  the  little  stretch  of  valley  land, 
and  begun  to  ascend  the  hill  before  a  word  was  spoken. 
The  girl  was  crying  bitterly,  and  Jack  could  find  no 
words  to  comfort  her.  But  she  stopped  him  finally  and 
said,  between  her  sobs : 

"I  have  been  a  fool,  Jack  —  a  blind  fool  — 

"Don't  take  on,  Lilly  —  say  nothing — you  will 
not  see  the  man  again.  The  detectives  say  he's  a  smart 
fellow  who  got  to  drinking  and  went  wrong,  and  stole 
a  heap  of  money.  I  hope  he'll  get  away.  There  will 
be  less  said  about  him  if  he  does.  What's  happened 
to-night  is  our  secret  —  yours  and  mine." 

She  made  no  reply  to  this,  but  as  they  walked  on, 
Jack,  encouraged  by  the  night's  adventure,  became 


JACK  WHAKTON  201 

talkative  and  gave  his  companion  much  valuable  ad 
vice. 

"If  anybody  speaks  to  you,  Lilly,  about  the  man, 
say  you  hardly  knew  him,  and  you  are  not  at  all  obliged 
to  folks  for  giving  you  away  to  strangers,  and  it  would 
be  well  for  them  to  attend  to  their  own  business  and 
leave  you  to  manage  yours." 

This  statement  might  not  be  absolutely  true,  but 
there  was  enough  truth  in  it,  Jack  thought,  to  justify 
its  use  under  the  circumstances ;  at  any  rate  it  was  his 
duty  to  encourage  the  broken  girl  and  get  her  into  a 
happier  mood,  if  possible.  It  is  highly  probable  he 
would  have  met  with  some  measure  of  success  in  this 
direction  if  he  had  been  allowed  full  time  to  pursue 
it ;  but  unfortunately  he  was  not.  Three  men  sprang 
suddenly  from  the  road  side,  and  while  two  seized 
Jack  and  held  him  fast,  the  third  put  steel  bracelets 
on  his  wrists,  and  then  fastened  them  together  by  a 
chain  behind  his  back. 

Frightened  out  of  her  wits  by  this  procedure, 
Lilian  screamed  at  the  top  of  her  voice,  and  started  on 
a  run  for  her  mother's  house ;  but  when  Jack  had  been 
made  secure  one  of  the  men  followed  the  girl  and  over 
taking  her  said : 

"Don't  take  on,  Lilly.  He's  a  bad  rogue ;  ye 
oughter  be  thankful  ye  air  shut  of  him." 

Lilian  stopped,  for  she  recognized  the  voice  of 
'Squire  Jabez  Wharton. 

"Come,  gal,"  continued  the  'Squire,  taking  her 
by  the  hand,  "I'll  see  ye  safe  home.  That  man  as  has 
been  hand-cuffed  is  not  a  fit  pusson  ter  be  with  sich 
a  gal  as  you.  He's  wuss  nor  a  lightning  rod  man, 
or  a  book  agent,  or  a  sewin'  machine  ped'ler,  an'  that's 
savin'  a  heap  agin  him,  but  it's  all  true ;  he  is  the  mean- 


202  UNCLE  PETER  SKED 

est  rascal  in  the  hull  country.  I  know'd  he  was,  Lilly ; 
I  know'd  he  was,  gal,  when  I  fust  sot  eyes  onto  him." 

While  'Squire  Jabez  was  dragging  the  girl  one 
way,  the  stiff-legged  detective  was  endeavoring  to  lead 
Jack  the  other ;  but  at  this  juncture  the  captive,  lifting 
up  his  voice,  wanted  to  know  what  in  the  name  of  com 
mon  sense  they  meant  by  all  this  foolishness ;  and  old 
Jabez  hearing  his  son's  angry  protest,  faced  suddenly 
about  and  taking  Lilian  with  him  hurried  back  to 
ascertain  what  the  trouble  was.  Overjoyed  to  find  it 
was  Jack  and  not  the  Colonel  who  had  been  enjoying 
a  private  walk  with  Lilly,  the  'Squire  now7  assured  the 
detectives  that  a  mistake  had  been  made,  and  apolo 
gized  for  putting  them  on  the  wrong  trail. 

The  officers  of  the  law  wrere  not  altogether  amia 
ble,  and  with  some  little  profanity  to  emphasize  their 
speech,  condemned  the  'Squire  for  his  stupidity,  and 
proceeded  to  put  leading  questions  to  Lilian  as  to  the 
present  whereabouts  of  the  man  known  in  the  neigh 
borhood  as  Colonel  Albright ;  but  the  bewildered  girl's 
answers  were  so  broken  by  sobs  that  'Squire  Jabez,  to 
whose  arm  she  was  clinging,  finally  grew  indignant 
and  said : 

'"Pears  to  my  mind,  genl'men,  ye  air  not  puttin' 
yer  questions  as  delicate  like  as  ye  oughter  put  them 
to  a  young  gal  in  the  dark,"  and  then  shaking  his  fist, 
he  continued:  "I'll  be  gol-durned,  gen'lemen,  if  I'll 
stan'  by  an'  let  any  body  bully  this  gal  at  this  here  time 
'o  night,  an'  she  a  widder's  darter  an'  my  neardest 
neighbor.  Men  of  your  perfession  oughter  know 
enough  ter  be  perlite  when  ye  talk  to  female  wimmen 
of  tender  years." 

It  was  impossible,  however,  for  'Squire  Jabez  to 
remain  angry  on  this  occasion.  He  was  thinking  what 


JACK  WHAKTOX 


a  cunning  dog  his  son  Jack  was,  and  how  he  had  fooled 
the  whole  neighborhood  and  likewise  his  own  father, 
and  the  more  'Squire  Jabez  thought  of  the  exceeding 
cleverness  of  his  son  and  heir,  the  more  he  felt  like 
shouting  aloud  for  joy. 

Finding  they  could  get  no  more  information  from 
the  girl,  the  detectives  now  turned  their  batteries  on 
Jack ;  but  this  young  man  only  knew  that  Colonel  Al 
bright  was  a  distinguished  leader  of  the  Greenback 
party,  on  intimate  terms  with  the  Honorable  Andrew 
Jackson  Travis,  the  poor  man's  friend,  and  that  he 
generally  fed  and  lodged  at  the  Cranberry  Hotel,  a 
very  respectable  tavern  in  the  town  of  Cranberry.  It 
could  hardly  be  expected  that  one  in  Jack's  humble 
position  would  be  on  confidential  terms  with  all  the 
great  statesmen  of  the  country,  and  know  exactly 
where  they  were  at  all  hours  of  the  day  and  night. 
The  truth  is,  Jack  had  grown  considerably  in  his  own 
esteem  within  the  last  hour,  and  was  so  voluble  and 
sarcastic,  the  'Squire  felt  called  upon  to  address  to 
him  a  few  words  of  admonition. 

"Don't  be  sassy,  Jack ;  keep  a  civil  tongue  in  yer 
head,  my  son.  A  soft  answer  turneth  away  wrath,  sez 
the  preacher." 

But  Jack  spoke  up  indignantly,  and  said : 

''What  right  have  they  to  pounce  down  upon  me 
when  I'm  walking  quietly  along  the  road,  and  put  fet 
ters  on  me,  I'd  like  to  know?  Confound  their  ugly 
pictures!  If  they'll  come  at  me  one  at  a  time,  I'll  lick 
'em  both,  so  I  will." 

'Squire  Jabez  could  not  for  the  life  of  him  help 
chuckling  with  delight  at  this  manifestation  of  the 
boy's  spirit ;  but  restraining  himself  as  much  as  possi 
ble,  he  said  in  rebuking  tones : 


204  UNCLE  PETER  SKED 

"Jack,  Jack,  least  said,  soonest  mended  —  the 
gen'lemen  meant  ye  no  harm ;  'twas  a  mistake  all 
round." 

The  truth  is,  Jack  was  not  half  so  angry  as  he 
pretended  to  be.  He  knew  the  more  he  blustered,  the 
less  attention  the  detectives  would  give  to  Lilian,  and 
just  now  he  was  quite  sure  she  would  prefer  to  escape 
observation.  Finding'  no  further  information  could  be 
gained,  the  young  couple  were  permitted  to  proceed 
on  their  way,  and  the  detectives  started  for  the  town 
intending  to  secure  Mustard  at  any  rate,  and  if  possi 
ble  his  more  showy  confederate.  They  were  strong 
enough  to  capture  either  singly,  but  in  case  the  two 
were  found  together  it  would  be  necessary  to  obtain 
help  and  act  discreetly,  for  one  of  the  criminals  was 
known  to  be  a  desperate  character  who  would  make 
stubborn  resistance,  and  not  hesitate  to  kill  to  effect 
escape. 

It  is  unnecessary,  however,  to  trouble  the  reader 
further  about  Ginger  and  Mustard.  They  were  both 
on  the  train  which  went  east  from  Cranberry  at  eight 
o'clock.  Their  destination  was  known  only  to  them 
selves.  The  suddenness  of  their  departure  was  the 
theme  of  some  little  speculation  among  those  who 
knew  of  it ;  but  as  their  hotel  reckonings  were  promptly 
paid  by  Mr.  Travis,  and  as  he  was  interested  in  having 
the  two  men  thought  well  of.  they  soon  ceased  to  be 
referred  to  otherwise  than  as  persons  who  had  taken 
part  in  the  Travis-Popper  campaign.  John  Rudd  still 
maintains  that  Colonel  Albright  was  the  most  eloquent 
and  convincing  speaker  he  ever  heard,  and  wonders 
why  he  has  never  seen  his  name  mentioned  in  the  news 
papers  as  that  of  one  of  the  leading  statesmen  of  the 
day. 


XVII 

DOUGALD  FRAZIER 

CHERRY  Farm  had  been  three  times  advertised 
for  sale,  and  twice  put  up  by  the  sheriff  and 
not  sold  for  want  of  bidders.  It  was  Monday 
now,  and  on  Thursday  next  it  would  be  offered  for 
the  third  time.  By  the  last  appraisement  its  value 
was  reduced  to  seventy-five  dollars  per  acre.  The 
farm  could  now  be  sold  as  an  entirety  for  fifty 
thousand  dollars,  and  then  the  live  stock  and  agricul 
tural  implements  could  be  disposed  of  at  whatever 
they  might  bring,  let  the  sum  be  much  or  little.  The 
law  threw  around  personal  property  no  protection 
against  a  hard  market  and  unconscionable  buyers. 
Richard  Dundren  had  given  up  all  expectation  of  hav 
ing  anything  left  after  Peter  Sked's  claim  was  satisfied. 
His  only  hope  now  was  that  enough  might  be  realized 
from  the  sale  to  pay  the  debt,  and  thus  leave  him  un 
burdened  for  the  struggle  with  poverty  upon  which 
he  was  about  to  enter.  Fifty  thousand  for  the  land 
would  leave  nearly  thirty-four  thousand  unpaid.  It 
was  hardly  possible  that  at  a  forced  sale  the  season's 
crop,  live  stock  and  farming  utensils  would  bring  the 
latter  sum.  It  would  lie  terrible,  if  after  all  were  gone, 
there  should  still  be  a  claim  of  ten  or  fifteen  thousand 
dollars  hanging  over  him  to  enforce  which  an  execution 
might  issue  at  any  moment.  The  hard  lines  which  con 
fronted  him,  however,  were  the  result  of  his  own  folly, 
and  he  must  face  them  manfully. 

(205) 


206  UNCLE  PETER  S 


If  he  were  but  out  of  debt  and  assured  that  his 
earnings  henceforth  might  be  devoted  to  the  use  of  his 
wife  and  children,  it  would  be  a  great  relief.  Indeed, 
it  would  be  almost  happiness.  If  wholly  free  he  did 
not  doubt  that  he  could  win  a  competency  for  himself 
and  them.  He  would  certainly  never  again  undertake 
to  run  a  race  with  ten  per  cent.  This  rate  might  do 
for  a  week  or  month  to  enable  one  to  bridge  over  an 
exigency,  just  as  a  drug  may  answer  to  correct  some 
derangement  of  the  human  system,  and  yet  as  a  regular 
diet  prove  destructive  to  it.  He  was  resolved  to  keep 
out  of  debt  henceforth,  live  within  his  means,  and  pass 
for  what  he  was,  rather  than  for  what  he  would  like 
to  be.  It  was  neither  a  crime  nor  a  dishonor  to  be 
poor,  but  it  might  be  both  to  assume  to  be  what  he 
was  not,  and  the  punishment  for  this  offense  had  in 
his  case  been  almost  more  than  he  could  bear. 

The  three  months  just  gone  had  told  heavily  on 
him.  He  was  no  longer  the  alert,  brusque,  confident 
man  of  business.  He  endeavored  to  be  cheerful  when 
in  the  presence  of  his  family,  but  his  sunken  cheeks, 
diminished  form,  and  spiritless  air,  bore  evidence  to 
the  fact  that  his  nights  were  no  longer  passed  in  re 
freshing  slumber  and  his  days  in  healthful  exercise. 
The  present  week,  however,  would  end  the  harrowing 
suspense.  That  the  real  estate  would  sell  under  the 
last  appraisement,  there  could  be  no  doubt,  and  as  for 
the  personal  property,  it  could  be  knocked  down  for 
a  penny,  if  no  more  were  offered. 

Gertrude  and  Kitty  held  a  secret  conference  with 
reference  to  the  condition  of  affairs  on  Cherry  Farm, 
and  concluded  that  the  younger  children  of  the  Dun- 
dren  family  should  be  relieved  of  the  annoyance  in- 


DOUGALD  PEAZIEK  207 

separable  from  a  public  sale.  There  were  pet  horses, 
colts,  cows,  calves  and  sheep  to  be  disposed  of  to  the 
highest  bidder,  which  the  children  would  grieve  to  see 
pass  into  the  hands  of  strangers,  and  led  away  from 
their  old  pasture  fields  to  others  possibly  just  as  good, 
but  certainly  no  better.  There,  for  instance,  was  Uncle 
Ben,  the  Leicestershire  ram,  who  was  on  the  most 
friendly  terms  with  them,  and  liked  nothing  better  than 
to  have  salt  dropped  from  their  hands  on  the  grass 
before  him,  and  while  he  was  smacking  his  old  chops 
over  it,  have  them  take  turns  in  getting  on  his  back 
and  making  a  horse  of  him.  Indeed,  this  solemn- 
visaged  old  fellow  with  the  wrinkled  nose  found  more 
pleasure  in  their  company  than  in  that  of  his  own 
mischievous  sons,  and  Mrs.  Kitty,  when  formally  in 
troduced  to  him  could  not  help  laughing  outright,  and 
making  an  elegant  double  courtesy,  so  proud  and 
happy  she  was  over  the  honor  of  his  acquaintance. 

Strong  friendships  grow  up  between  man  and 
beast.  Many  an  old  horse  whose  working  days  are 
over  is  still  cared  for  by  a  kind  hearted  master  as  at 
tentively  as  if  the  animal  were  worth  'its  weight  in 
gold.  There  was  one  such  gentle  creature  on  Cherry 
Farm.  Old  Nance  had  been  on  duty  for  nearly  thirty 
years.  She  was  a  famous  stepper  in  her  prime,  and 
could  rack  away  at  the  rate  of  six  miles  or  more  an 
hour.  Every  boy  and  girl  in  the  neighborhood  knew 
her  well.  It  was  not  a  rare  sight  to  see  a  half  dozen 
children  perched  at  one  time  on  her  ample  back.  She 
would  walk  about  carefully  if  it  was  their  wish  to  take 
a  little  ride,  or  continue  to  munch  her  grass  if  it  was 
their  desire  simply  to  sit  down  on  a  soft  place  and  rest. 
How  much  would  they  have  taken  for  old  Nance  at  a 


208  UNCLE  PETER  SKED 

voluntary  sale?  Not  all  the  money  in  the  Cranberry 
bank !  Then  there  were  sleek-haired  cows,  with  great 
brown  eyes,  that  came  up  to  the  milking  place  twice 
a  day  in  the  season,  and  sometimes  brought  with  them 
little  red-coated  calves  which  in  a  few  weeks  would 
become  playful  and  run  and  jump  and  kick  up  their 
heels  as  if  the  world  were  a  jolly  place  to  live  in. 

It  would  be  well  for  the  children  not  to  be  pres 
ent  when  these  pets  of  the  household  were  sold  and 
taken  away,  and  so  on  Monday  afternoon  Gertrude 
and  Kitty  took  them  in  charge  and  were  driven  by 
Archie  over  to  the  Frazier  homestead,  where  they  pro 
posed  to  spend  a  few  days  with  Dougald,  and,  per 
haps,  during  the  time  run  across  the  fields  and  see  if 
the  presence  of  a  company  of  sensible  folks  would  not 
have  a  salutary  influence  upon  that  most  emphatic  and 
unreasonable  of  men,  Ben  Hood. 

Dougald  was  a  white-haired  man  now,  and  being 
inclined  to  corpulency  and  somewhat  rheumatic,  rarely 
rose  to  his  feet,  and  never  went  out  of  doors  without 
the  aid  of  a  heavy  cane.  He  had  become  so  accus 
tomed  to  this,  support  that  he  generally  held  it  in  his 
hand  while  sitting,  and,  in  conversation,  always 
thumped  it  on  the  floor  to  emphasize  the  strong  points 
of  his  speech.  His  friends  were  therefore  never  at 
any  loss  to  know  just  when  Dougald  said  a  good  thing, 
and  as  his  conversation  bristled  with  strong  points, 
they  frequently  had  reason  to  regret  that  he  did  not 
carry  a  less  formidable  and  noisy  indicator. 

They  were  gathered  on  the  wide  porch  of  the  old 
farm  house  at  sunset,  Dougald  in  the  easy  chair,  Kitty 
and  Gertrude  arm  in  arm  walking  back  and  forth  be 
fore  him,  while  Archie,  reclining  on  a  bench,  was  in 
haling  the  fragrance  of  an  after  dinner  cigar. 


DOUGALD  FRAZIER  209 

"He's  a  blamed  fool,"  said  Dougald,  who  was 
not  the  most  courteous  and  tractable  of  men ;  "he  has 
less  political  sense  to  the  square  inch  than  any  man  I 
know  of." 

"Ben's  not  a  bad  fellow,"  replied  Archie,  lazily ; 
"there's  a  good  many  worse  than  Ben  Hood." 

"You  don't  know  him,"  responded  Dougald,  mak 
ing  the  floor  rattle  with  a  prod  of  the  cane,  "you  don't 
know  him.  I  do.  Oh,  as  a  neighbor  he's  well  enough, 
but  in  politics  he's  a  crank  —  nothing  good  enough  for 
him  —  nothing." 

"There  cannot  be  much  good  said  of  parties  now- 
a-days,"  answered  Archie.  "They  are  becoming  as 
corrupt  as  sin." 

"Mr.  Archibald  Frazier,"  said  Kitty,  assuming  a 
belligerent  attitude,  "if  you  dare  to  say  a  word  against 
the  Republican  party,  sir,  I  —  I  —  shall  make  a 
speech !" 

"Don't  Kitty ;  we  are  too  feeble  to  grapple  with 
you  in  argument  this  evening." 

Gertrude  smiled.  The  fact  is,  Gertrude  was  a 
Democrat,  and  so  was  her  brother  Dougald. 

"I  fear  I  have  married  into  a  family  of  rebels," 
continued  Kitty  regretfully.  "I  ought  to  have  come 
into  this  country  armed." 

"You  are  pretty  well  armed,  my  dear." 

"Thanks." 

"I  should  not  like  to  have  you  exchange  your  arms 
for  any  others  I  know  of." 

"Mr.  Frazier,  you  are  avoiding  the  issue  —  that's 
the  way  with  you  Democrats  —  when  cornered  you 
dodge.  Logic  and  eloquence  would  be  thrown  away 
on  you  —  I  shall  not  make  a  speech." 

14 


210  UNCLE  PETER  SKED 

"You  are  very  merciful,  dear.  How  shall  we  ex 
press  our  gratitude?" 

"Don't  mention  it  —  Sister  Gertrude,  let's  take  a 
little  stroll.  How  still  and  beautiful  everything  is. 
Do  you  call  this  Sleepy  Hollow?" 

"No,"  replied  Gertrude,  with  a  laugh,  "Brother 
Dougald's  cane  would  make  the  name  inappropriate." 

"Good  evening,  gentlemen,"  said  Kitty  bowing, 
as  she  and  Gertrude  started.  "If  not  back  by  mid 
night,  you  may  conclude  we  shall  not  return  till  morn 
ing,  and  lock  the  doors." 

As  the  two  walked  slowly  down  the  road,  Kitty 
said  rather  abruptly : 

"Sister  Gertrude,  why  have  you  not  married? 
Come,  now,  explain  this  little  mystery  to  me." 

Gertrude  was  silent,  but  .not  from  any  feeling  of 
annoyance.  The  tone  in  which  the  inquiry  was  made 
indicated  a  sisterly  and  sympathetic  interest  in  her 
welfare. 

"Pardon  me,"  Kitty  continued,  "I  have  no  right 
to  know,  and  no  desire  to  offend,  but  the  thought  oc 
curred  to  me  that  you  must  have  had  scores  of  offers, 
and  the  thing  puzzled  me.  I  will  drop  the  subject." 

"Xo,"  said  Gertrude,  softly,  "we'll  continue  it  — 
I  have  been  in  doubt ;  my  mind  is  clearer  now.    I  think 
there  will  be  a  change  soon." 

"Do  you  mind  telling  me  the  —  the  —  name?" 

"Perhaps  I  had  better  tell  you  the  situation  also. 
Last  week  the  proposal  was  made  by  Mr.  Travis  — 

"Mr.  Travis  !  —  somebody  here  —  near  ?" 

"Yes ;  the  gentleman  recently  elected  to  Congress 
in  this  district." 

"Oh,  ho  !  This  is  splendid  —  a  statesman  !  I 
hope  he's  a  Republican." 


DOUUALD  FRAZIER  211 

"You're  wrong,"  replied  Gertrude,  with  a  laugh. 

"Well,  you're  sure  he's  a  Congressman,  any  way." 

"Oh,  yes  —  that  is  to  say,  he  will  be  when  he  takes 
his  seat." 

"That's  the  important  thing;  we  shall  overlook 
his  politics  for  the  present.  I  shall  convert  him  when 
he  gets  to  be  my  brother-in-law.  You  accepted  him, 
of  course?" 

"I  did  not." 

"What!" 

"He  said  he  would  not  take  my  answer —  I  should 
have  time  to  think  about  it  and  he  would  call  again  in 
ten  days  for  my  decision." 

"Have  you  made  up  your  mind?" 

"I  think  so  —  I  am  sure  so." 

"You  will  — 

"Marry  him." 

"Good!  I  shall  spend  the  winters  in  Washington 
with  you.  Splendid !  Sister  Gertrude,  J'm  proud  of 
you,  and  of  your  husband-elect.  Mrs.  Archibald  Fra- 
zier,  of  California,  maroon  velvet,  etc.,  attended  the 
Tuesday  reception  of  Mrs. —  what  did  you  say  his 
name  was?" 

"Travis." 

"Yes,  dear ;  but  his  other  name  ?" 

"Andrew  Jackson." 

"Gertrude,  I'd  make  him  change  his  name." 

"Then  he  couldn't  take  his  seat,"  replied  Gertrude, 
with  a  little  laugh,  which  had  in  it  a  touch  of  sadness. 

"Well,  we  should,  perhaps,  not  be  too  particular. 
It  is  impossible  to  have  everything  just  as  we  want  it." 

They  had  by  this  time  reached  the  road  leading 
from  Cranberry  to  Rudd's  corners  which  for  two  miles 
southward  marked  the  eastern  boundarv  of  Gertrude's 


212  UNCLE  PETEK  SKED 

farm.  Here  was  a  guide  post,  and  at  its  base  two  or 
three  large  boulders  to  keep  wagons  from  running 
against  it  while  turning  from  one  road  into  the  other. 
Across  the  road  was  Hood's  farm,  and  a  little  distance 
to  the  north  the  private  avenue  leading  to  his  house. 
It  was  now  twilight ;  the  west  was  still  ruddy  with  the 
last  rays  of  an  October  sun.  To  Kitty,  who  had  all 
her  life  been  accustomed  to  the  noise  of  city  streets, 
the  silence  and  the  shadows  of  tree  and  shrub  around 
her  were  full  of  pleasant  mystery.  She  was  in  no  haste 
to  return.  They  sat  down  on  the  boulders  at  the  foot 
of  the  finger  post,  not  for  rest,  but  because  the  stones 
were  so  convenient  and  inviting.  Kitty's  thoughts  and 
tongue  were  busy  with  Gertrude's  good  fortune,  and 
the  splendors  of  a  winter's  residence  in  the  Capital. 
While  thus  absorbed,  an  open  carriage  drew  near  so 
suddenly  that  an  effort  to  retire  would  have  served  to 
attract  attention.  They  therefore  ceased  to  talk,  and 
sat  quite  still  until  it  had  passed  by.  It  was  too  dark 
to  distinguish  the  features  of  the  men  who  occupied 
the  vehicle,  but  their  voices  were  distinctly  heard,  and 
Kitty  thought  she  recognized  one  of  them  as  that  of 
Mr.  Hood.  When  the  carriage  had  disappeared  in  the 
darkness,  Kitty,  turning  to  Gertrude  found  her  tremb 
ling  like  a  leaf. 

"Sister!" 

Making  no  audible  answer  to  Kitty's  cry,  Ger 
trude  attempted  to  rise,  but  failing,  sank  back  on  the 
stone  and  leaned  against  the  post  for  support. 

"Can  I  help  you,  Gertrude  —  are  you  not  well  ?" 
exclaimed  Kitty,  putting  her  arms  around  her ;  "shall 
I  run  to  the  house  for  help?" 

"I  shall  be  better  in  a  moment  —  a  sudden  dizzi 
ness." 


DOUGALD  FRAZ1EK  213 

* 

It  was  some  minutes,  however,  before  Gertrude 
recovered  strength  enough  to  regain  her  feet,  and  set 
out  to  return.  Kitty,  putting  her  arm  about  her,  sought 
to  give  her  such  support  as  she  could.  They  walked 
slowly  and  not  a  word  was  uttered  by  either  until  they 
turned  from  the  road  to  enter  the  house ;  then  Gertrude 
leaning  for  a  moment  against  the  fence,  said : 

"Kitty,  never  mention  what  I  said  about  Mr.  Tra 
vis  ;  it  was  idle  talk.  1  shall  not  marry  him.  1  —  I  — 
shall  never  marry." 

It  was  too  dark  now  to  see  more  than  a  dim  out 
line  of  Gertrude's  face,  but  there  were  tears  in  her 
voice,  and  Kitty  felt  quite  sure  there  were  tears  also 
in  her  eyes.  They  proceeded  together  to  the  porch 
where  Archie  and  Dougald  were  still  seated.  .Here 
Kitty  remained,  but  Gertrude  entered  the  house,  and 
soon  after  retired  to  her  room. 

It  was  still  early  in  the  evening.  Dougald's  rheu 
matic  condition  rendered  him  somewhat  fearful  of  the 
night  air,  and  he  now  \vent  through  the  open  door  to 
the  sitting  room  where  a  small  fire  had  been  lighted  for 
his  special  benefit.  Archie  continued  on  the  porch  to 
finish  his  second  cigar  since  dinner :  and  Kitty,  placing 
a  chair  beside  him  sat  down  for  a  little  confidential 
conversation. 

"Archie,"  she  said,  putting  her  hand  in  his,  "I  want 
to  tell  you  something  —  something  very  important.'' 

''Well,  dear,  I  hope  it  is  nothing  that  troubles  you." 

"But  it  does  —  it  troubles  me  very  much." 

"Don't  you  like  your  sister  Gertrude?" 

"Oh,  yes  —  it  is  not  that." 

"Your  brother  Dougald?" 

"Fairly  well  —  not  so  much  by  a  good  deal  as  I 
do  his  brother  Archie,  but  well  enough." 


214  UNCLE  PETER  SKED 

"I'm  all  attention." 

"It  is  something  you'd  never  dream  of  —  never. 
There's  no  accounting  for  tastes.  It  puzzles  me. 
Archie,  your  sister  Gertrude  is  in  love  with  Mr.  Hood." 

Archie  laughed. 

"If  it  be  true,  Kitty,  what  is  there  in  it  to  trouble 
you?  Ben  is,  perhaps,  the  wealthiest  farmer  in  Cran 
berry  county,  and  big  as  he  is,  is  every  inch  a  man.  I 
should  not  object  at  all  to  the  marriage." 

"But  there  will  be  no  marriage,  and  this  is  what 
surprises  me  most  —  he  does  not  love  her  —  she's 
breaking  her  heart  for  him." 

"Did  Gertrude  tell  you  so?" 

"No,  no;  she  has  never  even  mentioned  his  name 
to  me  —  that's  one  of  the  reasons  why  I'm  sure." 

"Kitty,  your 're  away  off :  let  me  tell  you  some 
thing.  She  loves  another  man,  and  has  for  more  than 
ten  years.  That's  the  trouble.  The  thought  of  wed 
ding  Ben  Hood  has  never  entered  her  head." 

"Archie,  you're  away  off ;  let  me  tell  you  some 
thing.  I  know  all  about  that  other  man,  and  she  don't 
care  a  straw  for  him.  I  wish  she  did." 

"How  in  the  world  can  it  interest  you,  Kitty?" 

Kitty  hesitated ;  she  was  eager  to  tell  all  she  knew, 
but  felt  bound  in  honor  not  to  betray  the  confidence 
reposed  in  her  by  mentioning  Mr.  Travis'  name. 

"Well,"  she  replied  at  last,  "I  think  she'd  enjoy 
that  sort  of  life." 

"What  sort  of  life,  you  bundle  of  mystery." 

"The  sort  I'm  thinking  of,  you  bundle  of  stupidity 
—  a  life  where  you  mingle  with  famous  people  and  get 
your  dress  described  in  the  newspapers,  and  are  refer 
red  to  as  the  Honorable  Mrs.  So  and  So." 

Archie,    receiving    this    communication    with    a 


DOUGALD  FRAZIER  215 

hearty  laugh,  said,  "I'll  take  you  to  Cranberry,  to-mor 
row,  Kitty,  and  have  you  written  up  in  the  Torchlight. 
It  will  not  cost  to  exceed  a  dollar  —  I  think  ten  cents 
a  line  is  the  regular  price  for  such  things ;  but  I  didn't 
think  Brett  was  that  kind  of  a  fellow." 

"Brett,  you  simpleton!  who  mentioned  Brett  — 
his  name  is  —  well,  never  mind,  but  his  name  is  not 
Brett.  What  have  you  to  say  of  Brett?  I'm  interested 
in  a  person  of  that  name." 

"This  Brett  never  lived  in  San  Francisco,  Kitty — 
at  least  he  was  not  born  there." 

"The  one  I  refer  to  was  not ;  his  mother  was  born 
in  Cuvier  where  mine  was  married.  His  father  lived 
on  the  lake  near  North  Allerton.  Father  has  heard 
nothing  of  him  for  nearly  twenty  years.  The  name  is 
Robert  Brett." 

"He's  the  man  Gertrude  loves." 

Kitty  sprang  to  her  feet  and  confronting  her  hus 
band  exclaimed : 

"Archibald  Frazier,  what  do  you  mean  ?" 

"Sit  down,  Kitty,  and  I'll  tell  you  something; 
don't  ask  me  to  tell  all,  for  I  was  as  much  to  blame  *in 
the  matter  as  some  others.  Gertrude  and  young  Brett 
were  to  be  married,  and  without  fault  of  either,  the 
ceremony  was  interrupted,  and  the  wedding  never 
took  place.  They  were  right ;  those  who  interfered, 
were  wrong.  She  has  been  faithful  to  him  ever  since." 

"And  he?" 

"Has  not  been  heard  from  for  ten  years.  I  saw 
him  for  a  moment  three  years  ago,  but  had  barely  time 
to  ask  his  forgiveness  and  say  good  bye.  X  do  not 
even  know  where  he  is,  and  Gertrude  does  not." 

"I  do!"  cried   Kitty,  trembling  with  excitement, 


216  UNCLE  PETER  SEED 

"Robert  Brett  is  here  —  is  at  Mr.  Hood's.  Come,  it 
is  not  too  late  to  make  a  call,  let's  go  at  once  and  see." 

"What  makes  you  think  he  is  there,  Kitty?" 

"Never  mind.  Trust  me  for  finding  out  some 
things.  Get  your  hat  and  fetch  me  a  shawl.  Stir 
yourself,  laziness !  We'll  show  our  neighborliness  by 
calling  on  neighbor  Hood.  I  rather  like  him ;  he  seems 
a  frank,  hearty,  whole-souled  man,  and  will  be  de 
lighted  to  see  us.'' 

"But  why  such  haste,  dear?  Is  it  not  Gertrude's 
affair  rather  than  ours?" 

"No ;  it's  my  affair.  I  propose  to  correct  the  mis 
take  you  made." 

"Shall  we  drive  over?" 

"How  far  is  it?" 

"Not  to  ecexed  half  a  mile." 

"No;  it  will  be  a  pleasant  walk." 

Going  into  the  house  Archie  obtained  his  hat  and 
a  light  shawl  for  his  wife,  and  they  started  down  the 
country  road  together. 

"How  still  it  is,"  said  Kitty,  "how  much  room  for 
things,  and  how  bright  the  stars  are.  It  seems  almost 
as  if  we  were  alone  in  the  world.  What  if  we  were, 
Archie  ?" 

"I  should  be  Adam  and  you  Eve ;  you  would  be 
coaxing  me  to  eat  the  apple,  and  I  should  be  in  danger 
of  eternal  condemnation." 

Kitty  laughing,  replied : 

"What  a  nonsensical  answer  to  a  wise  inquiry.  I 
believe  Adam  took  the  apple  and  when  accused  put  the 
blame  on  Eve.  Adam  was  just  a  boy  in  years  ,and 
it's  as  natural  for  boys  to  climb  trees  and  steal  apples 
as  it  is  for  monkeys.  WVve  never  heard  Eve's  side 
of  the  story,  Archie." 


DOUGALD  FRAZIER  217 

"She  did  not  know  enough  to  write  a  story." 

"She  was  too  good  to  tell  a  story;  but  Adam  was 
not;  womanlike  she  bore  the  burden  silently  for  the 
man  she  loved,  bad  as  he  was."  Then  with  a  sigh  too 
loud  to  be  genuine,  she  continued :  "And  we've  been 
bearing  it  ever  since." 

"You  seem  to  have  stood  up  under  it  pretty  well, 
dear." 

"That  shows  how  good  the  metal  is  of  which  we 
are  made.  First  you  take  the  earthy  ore  out  of  the 
mine,  and  melting  it  get  man  ;  then  you  put  the  product 
through  a  refining  process  which  separates  the  lead, 
copper  and  silver  from  the  mass,  and  obtain  fine  gold 
—  that's  woman." 

"That  is  all  clear  enough,  and  very  interesting. 
If  we  were  in  a  mineral  region,  I  could  understand  the 
relevancy  of  your  remarks  to  the  things  around  us ; 
but  we  are  in  an  agricultural  section,  Kitty." 

"Where  every  farm  has  its  orchard  and  apples, 
and  every  house  its  brass  Adams  and  gold  Eves.  The 
connection  is  easily  traced." 

"So  you  think  Gertrude  has  an  affinity  for  the 
baser  metal?" 

"We  are  commanded  to  do  good." 

"And  to  be  good." 

"Well,  this  last  was  more  especially  intended  for 
men.  But  Gertrude  is  either  in  love  with  Mr.  Hood, 
or  with  Robert  Brett.  At  first  I  thought  it  must  be 
Mr.  Hood,  but  now  I'm  sure  it's  Mr.  Brett." 

"But  why  should  we  travel  about  the  country  at 
night  in  either  case?  Would  'it  not  be  well  to  allow 
those  most  interested  to  do  the  traveling?" 

"There  can't  be  anybody  more  interested  than  I 
am.  In  the  first  place,  I  like  Gertrude,  and  would 


218  *   UNCLE  PETER  SKED 

serve  her ;  in  the  second  place,  I'm  going  to  like  Mr. 
Brett,  and  thirdly,  I  like  Mr.  Hood,  and  want  to  call 
on  him,,  and  besides  all  this,  moreover,  and  finally,  I 
love  my  husband,  and  enjoy  a  quiet  walk  with  him  by 
starlight." 

"The  last  reason  is  more  than  sufficient.  How  do 
you  know  Robert  Brett  is  at  Hood's  ?" 

"By  instinct." 

"Do  you  know  him?" 

"No." 

"Have  you  been  told  a  man  of  that  name  is 
there  ?" 

"No." 

"Then  why  do  you  think  he's  there?" 

"Because." 

"That's  sufficient.  If  you  were  to  talk  an  hour 
you  could  not  make  the  fact  that  he's  there  or  not  there 
clearer  to  me.  We  shall  doubtless  find  him  at  Hood's, 
•or  not  find  him.  Nothing  like  being  absolutely  sure 
a  man  is  somewhere  in  the  Western  Hemisphere,  when 
you  start  out  at  midnight  to  look  for  him.  I'll  bet  you 
a  big  orange  Brett  isn't  within  a  thousand  miles  of 
Hood's." 

"I'll  take  it." 

"I'll  bet  you  two  that  Hood  hasn't  heard  of  him 
for  ten  years." 

"I  don't  want  so  many  oranges  dear." 

"A  box  of  caramels  with  a  picture  on  the  lid  of 
the  box." 

"I'll  take  it." 

"I  wish  the  orange  was  gold  and  the  caramels, 
diamonds." 

"So  do  I,  Archie ;  I  like  diamonds." 


DOUGALD  FRAZIEK  219 

"Oh !  but  I  should  get  the  diamonds,  for  I  shall 
win." 

"Not  to-night,  dear ;  you  may  win  some  other  time 
when  you've  had  more  experience.  But  not  now.  We 
shall  find  Robert  Brett  at  Mr.  Hood's,  and  I 
shall  know  before  I  return  if  he's  come  for  Gertrude ; 
I  believe  he  has." 

"He's  been  a  long  time  coming,  Kitty." 

"There  may  be  a  good  reason  for  his  delay  — if 
he  has  been  true  to  her  all  this  time,  we  shall  pardon 
the  delay." 

"Did  you  succeed  so  well  in  your  own  case,  Kitty. 
that  you  are  going  to  set  up  as  a  matchmaker?" 

"I  had  horrid  luck.  I  got  a  disagreeable  and  quar 
relsome  fellow." 

"And  he  — 

"The  best  of  wives." 

"Lucky  man !" 

"He  couldn't  have  done  better ;  he  did  not  deserve 
to  do  half  so  well." 

"I  think  you  are  right,  Kitty;  he  was  unworthy 
of  his  good  fortune." 

"Mr.  Archibald  Frazier,  you  are  mistaken." 


XVIII 

UNCLE  PETER 

WITH  much  light  banter  and  nonsense  Archie  and 
his  wife  proceeded  to  the  finger  post  where 
Kitty  and  Gertrude  had  been  an  hour  earlier ;  then 
turning  to  the  left  went  in  the  direction  of  Rudd's  cor 
ners  for  a  short  distance,  when,  leaving  the  public 
road  they  entered  the  private  avenue  leading  to  Hood's 
residence,  and  a  little  later  knocked  at  his  door  for 
admission. 

Hood  himself  responded  to  the  summons,  and  in 
the  darkness  did  not  recognize  his  vititors  but  observ 
ing  that  one  was  a  woman,  he  gave  them  a  cordial 
invitation  to  enter,  and  conducting  them  along  the 
dimly  lighted  hall,  said  : 

"Come  in  here  —  into  my  office.  It's  hardly  a  fit 
place  for  a  lady,  but  there's  a  fire  in  the  grate  to  take 
off  the  chill,  and  may  be  more  comfortable  for  her.'' 

They  had  no  sooner  come  under  the  full  light  of 
the  library  lamp,  than  Hood  exclaimed : 

"Hello,  Archie — Mrs.  Frazier — my  good  friends, 
I'm  delighted  to  see  you.  Here,  Mrs.  Frazier.  take 
my  grandfather's  chair.  It  was  made  in  1800,  the  bear 
which  furnished  the  cushion  was  killed  in  1802.  It's 
old  and  easy.  Archie,  be  seated ;  Sked,  Mr.  and  Mrs. 
Frazier.  Egad,  I  believe  Peter's  asleep  —  never  mind 
the  old  man,  he  isn't  of  much  account  any  way.  How 
do  you  both  do?" 

"Well,  very  well,"  replied  Archie,  with  a  twinkle 
(220) 


UNCLE  PETER  221 

in  his  eyes  indicative  of  internal  pleasure  over  the  dis 
appointment  of  his  wife. 

"Don't  you  find  it  a  little  dull  in  the  country,  Mrs. 
Frazier — Sunday  like  —  still  and  a  little  tome?" 

"Quiet,  but  not  dull,  Mr.  Hood.  I  find  the  coun 
try  very  pleasant,  indeed." 

"I'm  glad  to  hear  you  say  so ;  I  hope  you'll  remain. 
It  does  one's  eyes  good  to  see  such  women  as  Gertrude 
and  yourself,  occasionally." 

"I  observe,  Mr.  Hood,  you  put  Gertrude  first," 
said  Kitty,  laughing;  "that  may  be  just,  but  —  but  — 

"Oh,  I  shall  stand  up  for  Gertrude.  Nobody  can 
be  any  better  than  Gertrude ;  but  why  didn't  she  come 
with  you  ?  It's  been  a  long  time  since  she  honored  my 
house  by  her  presence." 

"She  was  not  feeling  very  well  this  evening,  Mr. 
Hood,  and  knowing  this  we  slipped  off  without  letting 
her  know." 

"Well,  I'm  glad  you  came;"  then  lowering  his 
voice,  Hood  continued  :  "You  see  that  dirty  bundle  of 
gray  hairs  and  rags  —  that's  Peter  Sked,  a  capitalist. 
You  wouldn't  take  him  at  first  glance  to  be  a  capital 
ist  ?  I  picked  him  up  on  the  road  to-night,  and  brought 
him  in ;  he  would  have  been  sleeping  in  a  fence  corner 
if  I  had  not." 

"Do  you  call  him  a  capitalist,  Mr.  Hood?"  ex 
claimed  Kitty. 

"He's  worth  not  less  than  half  a  million.  He's 
on  his  way  to  attend  the  sale  at  Dundren's." 

"He  cannot  be  the  man  to  whom  Dundren  is  in 
debted?"  said  Archie. 

"The  same.  He's  Mrs.  Dundren's  cousin ;  hard  as 
flint.  Money,  money,  money  —  he  thinks  of  nothing 
else." 


222  UNCLE  PETEK  SKED 

Kitty  regarded  the  old  man  with  surprise,  terror 
and  disgust.  She  was  also  sore  over  her  disappoint 
ment  at  not  finding  Brett.  She  could  only  account  for 
Gertrude's  sudden  illness  upon  the  hypothesis  that  the 
carriage  wTiich  passed  them  in  the  early  evening  con 
tained  the  man  she  loved.  It  was  certainly  Mr.  Hood's 
carriage,  and  one  of  the  voices  was  that  of  Mr.  Hood. 
Could  the  other  have  been  the  voice  of  Peter  Sked  ? 

"What  a  horrid  old  man,"  said  Kitty,  with  a 
shiver.  "How  unhappy  he  must  be  with  all  his 
wealth." 

Sked  was  reclining  in  an  easy  chair,  his  chin  on 
his  breast.  His  stringless  old  shoes,  unclad  ankles, 
and  ragged  clothing  did  not  present  a  pleasing  picture 
to  the  eye.  He  now  began  to  snore  and  chatter  in  his 
sleep,  at  times  becoming  quite  emphatic  in  his  utter 
ances.  Hood,  rising,  went  over  to  where  he  sat,  and 
giving  him  a  vigorous  shaking,  said : 

"Peter  —  Sked  —  wake  up  !" 

Springing  to  his  feet  ^and  striking  out  viciously 
with  his  right  hand,  the  old  man  cried : 

"Stand  back  there,  damn  ye!  —  an  inch  nearer, 
an'  I'll  brain  ye!" 

Hood,  laughing  said : 

"Sked  —  Sked  —  here's  company.  Here's  Mr. 
and  Mrs.  Frazier.  You  recollect  'Squire  Dougald  Fra- 
zier  well  ?  May  be  you  know  his  son  Archie  —  here 
are  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Frazier." 

Sked  was  now  wide  awake,  and  looking  with  some 
surprise  on  Archie  and  his  wife,  resumed  his  chair, 
and  then  turning  to  Hood,  said : 

"What  d'ye  say?    Eh?" 

"I  asked  if  you  knew  'Squire  Frazier." 

"The  Scotchman?" 


UNCLE  PETER  223 

"Yes." 

"I  knew  him.  My  nephew,  Robert  Brett,  was 
about  to  marry  the  daughter  —  what's  her  name  ?  But 
the  brothers  made  a  fuss.  I  never  knew  exactly  the 
rights  of  it ;  but  there  was  trouble  and  the  marriage 
never  came  off." 

"Peter,  this  is  Archie,  Miss  Gertrude's  brother, 
old  Dougald's  son,  and  this  is  his  wife,"  said  Hood 
hurriedly,  fearful  Sked  might  say  too  much  in  the 
hearing  of  Kitty.  "I  recollect  'Squire  Dougald  Fra- 
zier,  very  well ;  no  more  accomplished  gentleman  ever 
set  foot  in  Cranberry  County.  He  was  hardly  fitted, 
however,  for  the  life  of  a  pioneer.  Until  middle  age 
he  had  been  accustomed  to  the  conveniences  of  city 
residence,  and  the  luxuries  of  wealth." 

"Proud,  overbearing  and  dictatorial,"  said  Sked. 

"Not  at  all.  Peter ;  not  at  all ;  genial,  hospitable 
and  courteous.  You  didn't  know  him,  you  old  skin 
flint." 

"As  well  as  I  wanted  to,"  retorted  Sked,  angrily. 
"He'd  order  bones  thrown  to  a  human  creature  as  if 
he  was  a  dog.  Dod  burn  him,  he  thought  a  poor  trav 
eling  man  who  happened  to  be  hungry,  not  as  good  as 
the  hounds  he  kept." 

"Peter,  you've  had  a  hundred  good  lunches  at 
'Squire  Dougald's  house,  and  I  venture  to  say  never 
offered  to  pay  for  one." 

"Why  should  I?  Eh?  The  man  didn't  keep  a 
tavern.  He'd  a  knocked  me  down,  or  tried  to,  if  I  had 
offered  payment.  I  don't  insult  men,  Hood." 

"Not  in  that  way,  Peter,"  replied  Hood,  laughing, 
"not  in  that  way.  You  are  the  most  conscienceless  old 
fraud,  Peter,  I  ever  met." 

"Who  made  you  a  judge  of  men?    Eh?    What  do 


224  UNCLE  PETER  SKED 

you  know  about  men's  consciences?  Men  are  often 
misunderstood.  The  Lord  was,  by  wiser  men  than 
yourself  —  by  better  men  —  better  men,  Hood." 

Hood  laughed  heartily  at  this  exhibition  of  Peter's 
ingenuity  in  argument,  but  suddenly  assuming  the 
gravity  befitting  one  who  proposed  to  speak  on  a 
serious  subject,  he  said : 

"Mrs.  Frazier,  my  friend,  Peter  Sked,  is  worth  a 
million  — 

"Not  the  half  of  it,  madam  —  not  anything  worth 
mentioning.  I  am  a  poor  man.  madam." 

"I  believe  you,  sir,"  responded  Kitty,  disdainfully, 
"you  look  like  one.  I  pity  you  from  the  bottom  of  my 
heart ;  you  are  not  only  poor,  sir,  but,  pardon  me,  you 
are  unclean.  I  have  some  little  knowledge  of  you, 
and  you  have  some  little  claim  on  me  for  help.  If 
Mr.  Hood  will  be  kind  enough  to  have  you  taken  to  a 
bath  tub,  and  thoroughly  cleansed,  it  will  afford  me 
pleasure  to  present  you  with  a  suit  of  decent  clotuing." 

Kitty  was  angry ;  why  she  should  be,  and  \vhat 
special  claim  Sked  could  have  upon  her,  neither  Hood 
nor  her  husband  could  imagine,  but  she  was  evidently 
in  earnest,  and  her  proposition  to  give  Peter  a  bath, 
happened  to  be  in  exact  accord  with  Hood's  humor. 
Stepping  to  his  desk,  he  rang  a  little  bell,  and  a  mo 
ment  later  a  negro  responded  to  the  summons. 

"Give  Mr.  Sked  a  bath." 

"Yaas,  sah." 

"I  shall  not  trouble  you,"  said  Sked,  rising. 
"Where's  my  hat  and  umbrella  ?"  Then  with  an  angry 
flash  of  the  eyes  he  turned  to  Kitty  and  continued, 
"Pride,  madam,  sometimes  goes  before  a  fall.  Eh? 
If  not  good  enough  and  clean  enough  to  breathe  the 
same  air  with  you,  I  shall  bid  you  good  night,  madam." 


UNCLE  PETER  225 

"Give  Mr.  Sked  a  bath —  strip  him  and  dump  him 
in,"  said  Hood,  emphatically,  to  Caesar. 

"Where's  my  hat  and  umbrella?  Eh?"  Sked  de 
manded  angrily.  "I'm  old  enough  to  attend  to  my  own 
affairs  — " 

"You  will  find  them  in  the  morning.  You  shall 
not  leave  this  house  to-night.  Caesar,  give  Mr.  Sked 
a  bath !" 

"Yaas,  sah." 

"And  Caesar,"  said  Kitty,  "I'll  send  you  a  suit  of 
clothes  for  Mr.  Sked.  See  that  he  puts  them  on." 

"Yaas,  Mistis." 

"Damn  ye!  do  you  think  I  can't  take  care  of  my 
self?  Is  this  a  scheme  to  rob  me?"  asked  Sked  sav 
agely. 

"Xo,  no.  Peter,  it's  a  scheme  to  scrub  you,"  re 
sponded  Hood. 

The  old  man  was  trembling  with  rage,  and  as  the 
servant  approached  struck  at  him,  but  the  ebony  giant 
picked  him  up  and  carried  him  out  of  the  room  as  if 
he  were  a  disobedient  child. 

"He  should  have  a  guardian,"  said  Kitty  warmly. 

"He  seems  now  to  be  blessed  with  two,"  responded 
Archie,  dubiously. 

"Mrs.  Frazier,"  said  Hood  with  a  laugh,  "I  don't 
know,  of  course,  what  interest  you  may  have  in  Peter, 
but  I  do  know  a  bath  will  do  him  good." 

"Mr.  Hood,  have  you  some  one  about  the  house 
who  will  run  over  to  Mr.  Frazier's  for  me  ?" 

"A  dozen." 

While  a  horse  was  being  saddled,  Kitty  prepared 
a  little  note  and  in  a  few  minutes  the  messenger  started 
with  it.  A  half  mile  may  be  covered  by  a  fresh  horse 
*15 


226  UNCLE  PETER  SKED 

it.  less  than  three  minutes,  allowing  ten  minutes  for 
delay  at  Frazier's,  and  three  minutes  to  return,  and 
we  have  the  time  consumed  in  doing  Kitty's  errand. 

"The  clothes  are  for  the  old  man,"  said  Kitty  to 
Hood ;  "I  have  borrowed  a  suit  from  Archie." 

"This  is  the  most  outrageous  interference  with 
the  private  rights  of  a  citizen  I  ever  knew  of,"  said 
Archie.  "You  have  stripped  Sked  and  robbed  me. 
Ben,  my  wife  has  gone  mad,  don't  follow  her  example. 
One  crazy  person's  enough  at  one  time." 

Hood  carried  the  bundle  to  the  bath  room,  and 
handing  it  to  Caesar,  gave  him  such  instructions  as  he 
deemed  necessary. 

Fifteen  minutes  later,  when  Peter  was  returned  to 
the  library  by  Caesar,  he  was  in  appearance  a  new  man. 
The  white  shirt  collar  and  handsome  necktie  set  off  a 
fairly  good  face  to  great  advantage.  The  dark  Prince 
Albert  coat,  with  vest  and  pantaloons  to  match,  though 
not  a  perfect  fit,  hung  not  more  loosely  than  was  be 
coming  to  a  gentleman  of  his  age.  Above  the  orna 
mented  slippers  which  encased  his  feet,  could  be  seen 
purple  stockings  of  the  utmost  fineness.  There  was 
now  a  dignity  and  manliness  in  the  old  man's  bearing 
wholly  unobserved  before. 

When  he  entered  the  room  Kitty  advanced  to  meet 
him. 

"Uncle  Peter  Sked,"  said  she,  with  a  courteous 
inclination  of  the  head,  "permit  me  to  introduce  my 
self.  I  am  your  niece,  Mrs.  Katharine  Frazier,  the 
daughter  of  Mr.  John  Ross,  of  San  Francisco.  You 
are  looking  quite  well,  uncle." 

"You  are  a  saucy  hussy,  madam." 

The  old  man's  arms  hung  straight  from  the  shoul 
ders,  and  he  did  not  lift  them  to  meet  Kitty's  extended 


UNCLE  PETER  227 

hand ;  but  undismayed  by  this,  she  turned  and  bowing 
gracefully  to  her  husband,  said  : 

"Mr.  Frazier,  my  uncle,  Peter  Sked." 

"How  do  you  do,  sir,"  said  Archie  rising;  'I'm 
pleased  to  make  your  acquaintance,''  and  then  with  a 
wink  to  Hood,  which  did  not  escape  Kitty's  notice,  he 
continued:  "I  now  understand,  sir,  from  whom  my 
wife  inherits  her  great  beauty.  It's  from  your  side  of 
the  house,  sir.  She's  the  very  picture  of  you,  sir." 

Ben  Hood  coming  up  now,  took  Peter  by  the  arm, 
and  said : 

"You're  looking  remarkably  well,  my  friend,  be 
seated  —  here,  take  my  grandfather's  chair ;  you  are 
the  guest  we  honor  to-night." 

"Are  you  my  niece?  Eh?"  said  Sked  to  Kitty, 
who  had  placed  herself  beside  him.  "Are  you  John 
Ross'  daughter?" 

"I  am,  uncle  Peter." 

"You've  made  a  mistake  to-night,  madam ;  you've 
lost- 

"Oh,  I've  made  many  mistakes,  uncle.  If  I  had 
known  my  uncle  Peter  was  a  rich  man  I  should  have 
been  more  careful ;"  then  looking  soberly  to  Mr.  Hood, 
she  continued :  "I  certainly  should  have  married  bet 
ter  ;  but  being  poor  and  with  no  great  expectations,  I 
had  to  do  the  best  I  could,  and  that  was  not  very  good." 

There  was  a  broad  smile  on  Ben  Hood's  face  as 
he  returned  the  wink  Archie  had  given  him  a  few  min 
utes  ago. 

"I  shall  not  leave  you  a  penny,  madam,  if  I  had 
a  million  —  not  a  penny." 

"If  you  did  I  should  spend  it,  uncle,  and  that 
would  grieve  you,  and  make  my  husband  worse  than 
he  is.  But,  uncle  Peter,  in  all  seriousness,  is  there  not 


228  UNCLE  PETEE  SKED 

something  in  the  world  to  live  for  besides  money? 
Come,  now ;  think  and  tell  me.  I'm  your  sister's  child, 
would  you  have  me  pinch  and  starve,  and  live  in  rags 
to  save  up  a  little  money  for  other  folks  to  spend? 
Suppose  you  had  your  life  to  live  over  again  —  suppose 
you  had  an  only  daughter,  would  you  advise  her  to 
such  a  course?  I  think  better  of  you,  uncle,  than  to 
believe  you  would." 

The  old  man's  lips  were  twitching  nervously,  but 
he  did  not  speak. 

"You  had  a  daughter ;  I  should  be  glad"  to  know 
my  cousin.  Surely  you  do  not  keep  her  in  rags  and 
wretchedness,  when  you  are  so  able  to  render  her  com 
fortable  and  happy?" 

There  were  tears  in  Peter's  eyes,  but  he  continued 
silent. 

"Think  how  happy  you  might  be,  what  cheerful 
days  and  delightful  evenings  you  might  spend  with 
her  and  her  children  —  your  own  flesh  and  blood, 
uncle  —  grandsons,  may  be  —  another  phase  of  your 
own  life,  and  a  continuation  of  it.  Where  is  my  cousin 
—  your  daughter  ?" 

"Dead,"  sobbed  the  old  man. 

It  was  Peter,  not  Sked,  who  spoke.  Kitty  placed 
her  hands  on  her  uncle's  bony  wrists,  and  there  were 
tears  in  her  eyes  and  voice  when  she  said : 

"I  pity  you  from  the  bottom  of  my  heart  —  you  are 
even  poorer  than  I  thought  —  a  homeless  wanderer, 
but  not  friendless,  uncle.  You  were  my  mother's 
playmate,  and  I  shall  be  your  friend,  whether,  you  want 
me  to  be  or  not.  —  Mr.  Hood  tells  me  you  are  rich. 
Don't  imagine  I  want  a  dollar  of  your  money ;  I  do  not. 
I  have  all  I  need.  For  my  sake,  for  your  own  sake  and 
the  credit  of  the  familv,  vou  must  henceforth  dress  and 


UNCLE  PETER  229 

live  like  a  gentleman.  If  you  think  you  cannot  afford 
to  do  this  at  your  own  cost,  it  shall  be  at  mine.  I 
have  enough  for  both." 

The  old  man's  long  bony  fingers  had  closed  about 
Kitty's  hand  and  held  it  tightly. 

"And  uncle,  if  I  have  said  a  word  to  offend  you, 
I  ask  your  forgiveness.  If  I  have  been  rude  it  was 
because  I  was  angry  —  because  I  could  not  bear  to 
see  you  in  —  in  rags  —  you,  who  should  be  as  well 
clad,  proud  and  happy  as  other  men." 

While  Kitty  wras  endeavoring  to  reconcile  Peter 
to  the  occurrences  of  the  evening,  footsteps  were  heard 
in  the  hall,  and  looking  up  she  saw  a  large,  handsome 
well  dressed  man  of  perhaps  thirty-two,  standing  on 
the  threshhold  of  the  library  door.  He  was  evidently 
surprised  to  find  strangers  in  the  room  and  in  doubt  as 
to  whether  he  should  enter,  but  Hood  observing  him, 
called  out : 

"Come  in,  Rob.  You  know  Archie.  Mrs.  Fra- 
zier,  Mr.  Brett." 

Giving  his  hand  to  Mrs.  Frazier  and  then  to 
Archie,  Robert  said : 

"I  have  been  taking  a  run  over  your  old  farm, 
Mr.  Frazier."     Then  observing  Peter,  he  continued, 
''Why,  uncle  —  really,  I  didn't  recognize  you  at  first  — 
you  have  changed  very  much,  and  for  the  better  within 
the  last  hour." 

Peter  looked  up  to  indicate  he  had  heard  his 
nephew,  but  made  no  reply. 

"Did  you  call  at  the  house?"  asked  Archie. 

"No,  no,  I  didn't  venture  to  do  that.  Mr.  Hood 
informed  me  your  brother  Dougald  was  living  there, 
and  I  am  not  at  all  sure  he  would  be  pleased  to  see  me." 


230  UNCLE  PETER  SKED 

"You  need  entertain  no  fear  of  that  sort.  Dougald 
is  wiser  than  he  was." 

"Mr.  Brett,"  said  Kitty,  ''did  you  ever  hear  of  one 
John  Ross?" 

''Oh,  yes,  ma'am.  He  married  my  mother's  sister 
-  Uncle  Peter  Sked's  sister,  but  as  I  understand,  re 
moved  many  years  ago  from  Cuvier  to  California." 

"I  am  his  daughter  —  your  cousin  — 

Ben  Hood,  bringing  his  single  hand  down  with  a 
tremendous  slap  on  Archie's  shoulder,  cried : 

"The  incidents  of  the  night  are  almost  like  a  ro 
mance.  •  I  believe  if  I  were  in  Rob's  jplace,  I'd  cap  the 
climax  by  kissing  my  cousin." 

Under  the  inspiration  of  Ben  Hood's  eloquence 
the  cousins  clasped  hands  again  —  and  —  then  did  just 
what  Ben  Hood  would  have  dons  if  .he  had  been  in 
Robert's  place. 

"Did  you  come  to-day?"  asked  Archie. 

"I  reached  Cranberry  at  four.  Mr.  Hood  met  me 
at  the  train,  and  we  arrived  here  a  little  after  sunset." 

There  was  a  quick  flash  from  Kitty's  eyes  to  those 
of  her  husband,  which  in  effect  said : 

"I  told  you  so.  Never  doubt  me  again.  Men  need 
not  hope  to  know  as  much  as  women." 

And  the  answering  flash  said : 

"You've  won  the  orange,  and  likewise  the  cara 
mels,  with  the  handsome  picture  on  the  lid  of  the  box." 

"Cousin  Robert,"  said  Kitty,  rising,  "I  hope  to 
meet  you  to-morrow.  Uncle  Peter,  you  must  be  ready 
to  take  a  drive  with  me  in  the  morning.  I  shall  be 
here  for  you  bright  and  early.  Good  night  all." 

"Don't  be  in  a  hurry,"  said  Hood.  "Peter,  when 
you  want  to  go  to  bed,  ring  the  bell  and  tell  them  to 
show  you  to  a  room.  Rob,  let's  go  with  Mr.  and  Mrs. 


UNCLE  PETER  231 

Frazier  for  company  and  exercise.  Come,  Archie, 
we'll  lead  the  way,  and  give  the  cousins  an  opportunity 
to  talk  over  family  matters.  I  doubt  not  they  have 
many  inquiries  to  make  about  their  kinfolks." 

With  Hood  and  Archie  in  advance  the  party  pro 
ceeded  leisurely  to  Dougald  Frazier's.  What  passed 
between  Kitty  and  her  cousin  was  uttered  in  a  low  tone 
and  the  strictest  confidence,  and  neither  Ben  Hood  nor 
Archie  had  any  inkling  of  what  it  was,  nor  any  care, 
perhaps,  to  know  ;  but  this,  is  certain,  when  Ben  Hood 
and  Robert  said  good  night  at  the  gate,  and  turned  to 
retrace  their  steps,  Kitty  ran  into  the  house,  and  going 
directly  to  Gertrude's  room,  knocked  loudly  at  the  door. 

"Is  that  you,  Kitty?" 

"It  is.    Let  me  in,  please." 

"Not  to-night,  dear." 

"Gertrude,  you  must !  I  shall  break  down  the 
door.  I  can't  stand  it." 

"Well,  come." 

Gertrude  had  not  retired.  She  had  been  strug 
gling  with  the  past,  and  perhaps  concluded  her  lines 
had  not  fallen  in  pleasant  places.  She  had  been  think 
ing,  also,  of  the  future,  and  the  prospect  did  not  seem 
at  all  bright. 

"I  know  your  secret,  my  lady,"  said  Kitty,  em 
bracing  her;  "I  know  the  very  man  you  love." 

"Kitty,  you're  crazy." 

Kitty  laughed  and  "continued  : 

"I  can  tell  you  something  more  —  the  man  loves 
you." 

"Wrhy  do  you  break  into  my  room  to  talk  non- 
se;  -,e?" 

"I'm  so  full  of  it." 


232  UNCLE  PETER  SKED 

"You  seem  to  be  overflowing  with  it,  dear.  I  am 
not  in  love  with  any  body." 

"You  are  —  you  are:  I  have  the  proof." 

"What  I  said  about  Mr.  Travis  is  nothing,  Kitty. 
I  do  not  care  at  all  for  him." 

"Oh,  I  know  that.  But  how  about  Robert  — 
Brett  ?" 

"Kittty,  Kitty,  why  do  you  trifle  with  me?"  cried 
Gertrude  with  flushing  face.  "Has  Archie  told  you 
something  — ' 

"Not  much  —  but  Robert  has!" 

"Tell  me  what  you  mean." 

"I  mean,  dear,  that  Robert  is  faithful  and  impa 
tient.  He  is  here ;  I  have  seen  him." 

There  was  no  further  trifling  on  Kitty's  part,  and 
had  been  none  on  Gertrude's ;  both  were  in  tears,  but  it 
was  a  summer  shower  with  its  bow  of  promise  and 
its  sack  of  gold.  Gertrude's  heart,  at  least,  was  full 
of  sunshine. 

The  next  morning  Robert  called  on  Gertrude.  We 
shall  not  venture  into  the  little  parlor  where  the  in 
terview  took  place,  nor  shall  we  accompany  them  in  the 
afternoon  on  that  happy  ride  to  Dundren's ;  nor  shall 
we  tell  in  detail  how  Mr.  Travis  found  that,  like  the 
manuscript  of  a  poor  novel,  he  was  declined  with 
thanks ;  nor  shall  time  be  wasted  on  the  particulars  of 
a  negotiation  between  Robert  Brett  and  Mr.  Dundren, 
which  terminated  in  a  loan  of  money  on  long  time  and 
low  interest  to  pay  off  Sked's  claim.  The  reader  must 
be  content  with  a  brief  summary  of  the  occurrences 
of  the  next  few  weeks.  Archie  and  Kitty  made  elab 
orate  preparation  for  their  sister's  wedding,  and  when 
the  day  arrived,  the  Frazier  homestead  was  decked 
with  evergreens,  flowers,  and  rich  autumn  leaves. 


UNCLE  PETER  233 

Dougald  gave  the  bride  away,  and  Ben  Hood  was  the 
groom's  best  man.  Old  Peter  Sked  was  present  in  ele 
gant  attire,  with  a  handsome  wedding  favor  pinned  to 
the  lapel  of  his  coat.  He  was  growing  very  proud  of 
his  niece  and  nephew,  and  had  so  far  yielded  to  their 
wishes  as  to  dress  well  at  their  expense.  To-day  he 
was  especially  pleased  when  Kitty  put  her  hand  on  his 
arm  and  introduced  him  to  the  wedding  guests  as  her 
uncle  Peter  Sked. 

After  a  splendid  dinner  Robert  and  Gertrude, 
Archie  and  Kitty  were  escorted  to  Ben  Hood's  car 
riage,  and  when  nicely  seated  went  flying  over  the  road 
to  Cherry  Farm,  followed  by  a  long  train  of  merry 
young  neighbors,  male  and  female.  At  Dundren's 
there  was  to  be  a  great  gathering  of  the  beauty  and 
chivalry  of  the  county.  The  Cranberry  band  had  been 
engaged  to  make  music  for  the  dancers  and  the  prom- 
enaders.  Mr.  Travis  did  not  attend,  but  it  was  his  own 
fault,  for  an  invitation  had  been  sent  to  him.  Jack 
Wharton  was  present,  but  the  awkward  fellow  seemed 
at  a  loss  to  know  just  what  to  do  with  himself.  Lilian, 
however,  was  perfectly  at  ease,  and  as  fresh  and  lovely 
as  a  rosebud. 

Toward  ten  o'clock  the  bride  and  groom  took  leave 
of  their  friends,  and  accompanied  by  Archie  and  his 
wife,  hastened  to  catch  the  night  train  for  the  East. 
It  is  said  Ben  Hood's  bay  team  won  high  credit  for 
speed  on  this  occasion.  The  trunks  of  the  party  having 
been  sent  forward  in  the  afternoon,  were  on  the  plat 
form,  checked  and  ready  to  be  put  aboard.  There  were 
but  a  few  brief  minutes  to  wait ;  the  headlight  of  the 
approaching  train  could  be  seen,  then  the  roar  of  its 
wheels  was  heard,  and  then  a  hearty  good  bye  was 


234  UNCLE  PETER  SKED 

said  to  Ben  Hood,  and  the  two  newly  married  couples 
started  to  meet  the  sun  in  its  rising. 


Along  towards  Christmas  time  there  were  great 
doings  at  wid6w  More's  cottage  on  the  hill,  when  Jack 
and  Lilian  stood  up  to  be  made  man  and  wife.  If  the 
latter  thought  at  all  of  Colonel  Albright,  and  felt  sore 
at  heart  over  the  ending  of  her  first  dream  of  love, 
she  did  not  show  it  in  the  least ;  in  fact,  she  doted  on 
Jack  all  the  more  because  she  knew  by  actual  experi 
ence  he  was  more  manly  and  better  otherwise  than 
some  men  who  were  far  more  showy  and  pretentious. 
And  if  Jack  thought  any  the  less  of  her  for  her  girlish 
love  of  the  Prince,  he  did  not  make  it  known  by  act 
or  word,  or  hint.  It  may  be  safely  assumed,  therefore, 
that  he  found  solid  satisfaction  in  the  thought  that  he 
had  been  in  some  degree  instrumental  in  reselling  her 
from  a  life  of  misery. 

If  there  was  a  perfectly  contented  and  happy 
farmer  in  all  Cranberry  County,  'Squire  Jabez  Wharton 
was  the  man,  and  no  mistake.  What  a  sly  dog  Jack 
was,  any  how !  When  he  seemed  to  be  no  where  in 
the  race  he  was  found  coming  in  ahead  of  every  body, 
and  carrying  off  the  prize.  To  tell  the  truth,  though, 
may  be  those  tell  it  who  ought  not  to,  Jack  was  a  chip 
of  the  old  block,  and  had  inherited  the  subtle  wit  for 
which  the  Whartons  had  always  been  distinguished. 

If  any  one  desires  to  hear  of  the  shabby  tricks  and 
beguiling  methods  of  that  Hebrew  Jew,  from  Jerusa 
lem,  'Squire  Jabez  will  stop  the  plow  in  seeding  time 
to  tell  the  story.  It  is  an  instructive  tale  and  fully  as 
interesting  the  fortieth  time  you  hear  it  as  the  first. 


UNCLE  PETER  235 

The  gentle  reader  is  advised,  if  he  likes  good 
stories,  to  call  at  the  Wharton  homestead.  To  go  there 
you  start  from  the  Cranberry  hotel,  proceed  northward 
about  two  hundred  yards,  then  turning  squarely  to  the 
right,  follow  the  road  past  the  church  and  across  tfie 
river,  and  then  on  until  you  ascend  the  hill  crowned 
by  Mrs.  More's  cottage.  This  is  a  good  place  to  stop, 
for  Mrs.  Jack  Wharton  has  excellent  cider  in  the  cel 
lar,  and  good,  crisp  doughnuts  in  the  cupboard ;  but 
if  impatient  for  an  intellectual  feast  you  should  keep 
on  until  you  reach  a  garden  on  the  left,  enclosed  by  a 
high,  rough  picket  fence  to  keep  the  chickens  and 
turkeys  from  the  peas  and  newly  planted  sweet 
corn  of  early  spring.  Just  beyond  this  garden  patch 
behind  two  walnut  trees,  is  the  Wharton  domicile,  an 
unpainted,  wooden  structure,  with  an  ample  porch, 
the  roof  of  which  is  covered  with  oak  hand-made  shin 
gles,  much  warped  by  the  rain  and  sunshine  of  half  a 
century,  and  a  little  moss,  green,  withal,  in  spots. 

If  it  be  summer  time  and  soon  after  the  hour  of 
noon,  'Squire  Jabez  will  probably  be  sitting  on  the 
porch  in  the  arm  chair  having  the  sheepskin  cushion, 
smoking  a  corn-cob  pipe.  He  may,  however,  if  it  be 
a  little  late,  have  dropped  off  into  a  refreshing  nap. 
and  in  this  case  it  would  be  well  on  entering  at  the 
gate,  to  exercise  some  little  degree  of  caution,  and  be 
wary,  for  recently  the  'Squire  has  bought  an  able- 
bodied  brindle  dog  to  entertain  visitors  in  his  absence. 
The  instinct  of  this  guardian  of  the  household,  being 
somewhat  defective  for  lack  of  special  training,  has 
led  him  within  the  last  ninety  days  to  mutilate  three 
innocent  and  useful  persons  on  the  supposition  that 
they  were  either  book  agents,  sewing  machine  peddlers, 
or  lightning  rod  men.  Of  course,  the  dog  will  improve 


236 


UNCLE  P^TER  SKED 


by  long  association  with  'Squire  Jabez,  and  come  in 
time  to  discriminate  between  men,  and  only  quench  his 
thirst  for  blood  in  a  legitimate  and  proper  way;  but 
at  this  writing  it  would  be  well  to  keep  an  eye  on  him. 


UC  SOUTHERN  REGIONAL  LIBRARY  FACILITY 


A     000  138  672     1 


